Trapped in a Pseudo Nirvana
by ladyofdark.1981
Summary: Ashe is in for a shock to find that her family still lives, in an alternate dimension where mist is only water vapour condensing out of the atmosphere. too many genres to mention and probably won't be suitible for minors.
1. Chapter 1

This is a completely independant story to the others I write, it has a few things changed to suit where ever this ends up as there is no plot line of any description, other than the assumed explanation of how everything begins; yes, mist's a bitch then it kills you or screws your life up completely.

Now, there is no actual people in this (As I believe self inserts are tacky at best), only a similarity to my location as I see it every day and can't be bothered to google search another location; but I highly doubt that really matters, how often do you read of a location other than choice cities/ states of the US in these types of stories?

Anyway, this is not to be taken seriously, yes there is serious parts in it but that it to reflect _normal_ life. I hope you enkoy this experimental ramblings.

* * *

Prologue: Mist Troubles.

The Shiva plunged into darkness, the nethicite experiment condemning the fleet with a burning mist that ate at everything it touched. Ghis still felt whole despite the burns to his body; why had he gone against orders? He knew why, he did not want that loon who calls himself Dr. Cid to get the glory of being the only one with the secrets of the powerful stones; now he wondered if the power of the stones were safe enough for the empires use.

"Ghis you bastard!" cried an angry Captain Azelas, who crawled towards him, "What have you done?"

Ghis opened his eyes to see the Shiva had crashed in what looked like a Rozzarian savannah, the hull of the graceful ship torn open. The Judge's observations were brought to a sudden halt when an armoured fist collided with his jaw.

"I'm pretty damn sure that the Emperor will not be happy with you!" The Dalmascan traitor slumped at his side, "And to think I betrayed the one shining light in all of Ivalice for this." He gazed out over the multitude of bodies littered around, "May the Gods torture your soul for eternity."

Ghis tried to talk, but the mist had burned his throat, so all he could manage was a weak grunt. Frustrated and angry, he scanned the landscape; it did not look like Rozzaria, the building he could see were nothing like anything he had ever seen before.

"What are you looking at?" Vossler asked, becoming aware of Ghis's diverted attention. "What is that?" the sound of klaxons in the distance shattering the tension in the air.

"Is anybody in here?" called a woman with an accent that unlike any they had ever heard.

"Yes!" Vossler called back, struggling to his feet, "we're on the bridge!" Vossler's jaw dropped when he saw a familiar ashen-blond hair and regal face rise from the hole in the floor, "Ashe?"

"Dude?" the girl asked, shooting him a confused look, "Do I know you?" The Dalmascan man tried to step towards her, when his leg gave out from underneath him, sending him crashing to the floor. The girl stepped over him, "Your leg's prob'ly broken," she checked along the entire length of the offending limb until she found the break in his femur. Vossler gave a grunt from the pain, biting his tongue to prevent him from appearing weak. She pulled out a small black rectangular brick, pushed a few buttons on it and put it to her ear. "Hay Alex, I found two more," she was talking to someone named Alex, who now replied to her words. "Yeah, we're up high, on the bridge." She paused again, "Cut the Star Trek quotes … For fucks sake Alex! I'm not Captain Janeway! Get your arse up here now!" she hit another button on the phone and slipped it in her pocket. "Sorry about that, guys, he's a geek." She tested the burns on Ghis's face, "So what happened here?"

"Genius here decided to experiment of diafactered nethicite," Vossler explained.

She looked back at the knight, "Come again?"

"The nethicite released a dangerous level of mist which sunk this vessel and, I'm guessing, killed most of those on board."

"Are you telling me this thing is a boat?" her disbelief unmistakeable, "the ocean's over a hundred K's from here."

"K's?" Ghis managed to say, albeit strained.

"Kilometres," she clarified, studying his armour, "This may sound a little strange, but, where did you come from?"

"I hale from Dalmasca, Ghis is from Archadia," Vossler leaned against the bulkhead, looking at his broken leg, "Where are we?"

"My own little piece of paradise," she smiled half-heartedly, "in country Victoria."

"Where in Rozzaria is that?"

"Rozzaria?"

Vossler began to answer but another familiar face popped up through the hole in the floor, the image of the late prince Alesius, fifth son of Raminas. _What is going on here?_

"How are they?" he asked the girl, lifting a case with a red cross on it, "Ooh, that looks nasty!" he hurried to Vossler's leg and in a swift yet painful motion, set the leg and began to bandage it. Vossler screamed from agony. "You'll be fine, but you will still need to be checked at the hospital."

Ghis was next on his list, "the burns look superficial, but you will need to treated, you will be glad to know that they will not scar." He began to apply a gel to the burns, the Judge sighed with the cool feeling of the gel, "The paramedics will be up here soon."

He was not wrong, two men in white shirts and a stretcher. Vossler was placed on it and carefully lowered down the hole, a moment later; another two men with a stretcher came for Ghis.

"How many others were found?" the girl asked Alex, following him out of the debris.

"Only three and they don't look good, Ash," he jumped down, "what is this thing? Some U.S. military experiment?"

"Why would U.S. soldiers wear armour?" She quizzed him, "and they said they were from Archadia or something."

"Where's that?" Alex asked.

"Like I would know? I was hoping you knew, being the super geek of the family and all," She watched the ambulances drive away, kicking up dust as they went, "You going to work now?"

"I have to, one of the survivors has sever head injuries," he rested his hand on her shoulder, "I think we should keep this quiet, if it is a part of secret experiments, we don't want anything bad happening here, Dad wouldn't like it."

"So you've already spoken to the ambo's?" Ash asked, "They know not to say anything?"

"You of all people should know that the medical world it tighter than the mafia," he chuckled, "Christ if someone blabbed, we all would suffer." He jogged off to the house, to ready for work at the hospital. Ash continued to the house slower, looking back over her shoulder at the gargantuan structure that had fallen out of the sky.

"Yes, this will be easy to cover up," she sarcastically said to herself.

* * *

When I do an alternatice universe I like to think I did it in a different way, yes I know the Star Trek references were cheesy but when you live the geek life, sci-fi references are an everyday occurance, Chapter one is actually complete but you will have to wait a few days for Two to be ready and so on. I hoped you liked the intro.


	2. Chapter 2

Finally, these are feeling very long, which I hope nobody minds. Enjoy! :Þ

* * *

Chapter 1: Where are we?

Balthier struggled with Fran in his arms, she was conscious but in pain, muttering something about the mist burning. "We won't make a shuttle before this hunk of scrap metal collapses," the pirate grumbled irritably, "argh! That damn mist is burning my eyes!" He continued to run down the corridor, until he collided with an unexpected structure with his groin, dropping Fran onto it. "What the?" he looked up from his crumpled position on the floor; what he saw boggled his mind. A dark red wooden table towered over him with Fran lying on top of it. It slowly became apparent that the room they were in was nothing like the corridors of the Bahamut, it looked comfortable in comparison to the cold structure where their epic battle took place.

"Balthier?" Fran called from the table.

"Hrmph," he replied, unable to speak from the shock to his body.

"Is this your idea of a joke?" she sat up, appearing to be better than before, her Viera body being able to withstand quite a beating without injuring her too much.

"No," he groaned, trying to stand. The room resembled a grand dining room on a smaller scale, seating around twenty at most.

"Hay, Vossy!" a faint voice from another room called, "What was that splash?"

"How should I know?" a familiar male voice responded, "I'll go check!"

Balthier forgot his injury, as did Fran, "What is this place?" Fran whispered, her ears twitching, following the sound of footsteps walking away from them, "We should proceed with caution."

"Agreed," he opened the door to a hallway, "Which way?" he asked quietly.

"Left," they continued, listening to a commotion a short distance away.

"Vayne?" Another familiar voice cried, "good gods, get him out of there!"

"I'm trying, he's unconscious!" the first male argued, "Why don't you help Ghis?"

"For fucks sake guys!" the girl yelled, "I'll do it, shall I?" They heard a splash followed by another; Fran hurried out to a large living area with two huge glass doors.

"You shouldn't try doing that on your own," grumbled who, Balthier now clearly saw, was Vossler, he looked similar to what he looked like when they last saw him, only less dressed and healthy.

"I'm fine," the girl said, climbing out of the pool, "Roll him on his side and clear his airways."

Balthier and Fran stayed back, cautiously watching out of their line of sight. The girl began to kiss the lifeless body of Vayne, then pushed forcefully down on his chest and repeated the bazaar act, occasionally checking his pulse. "Okay, he's breathing," she stood up, "You!" she pointed to Ghis, "Call an ambulance and Vossy, stay with him." She ran through the doors towards another room, shooting past the pirates without noticing them; a moment later, she returned with a few towels, again ignoring them. The two pirates staring at her as she ran, she looked familiar.

"This is a strange place," Fran commented, deciding to step out to show herself, "Excuses me," she called to the group of people by the pool.

"Fran?" Vossler looked up from Vayne's side, "What are you doing here?"

"We could ask you the same thing, _Traitor_," Balthier spoke up, "Still pandering to the Empire I see."

The girl looked at the two newcomers, "Friends of yours, Vossy?" Balthier almost laughed at watching Vossler cringe at the nickname the girl gave him.

"What is this place?" Fran asked, ignoring Balthier's amused smirk. "I can't feel any mist here."

"You won't, this is not Ivalice;" Ghis answered calmly; "This is Earth."

"Is that what the afterlife is called?" Balthier asked, eyeing Ghis and Vossler suspiciously.

The wet girl who had been working on Vayne laughed at him, "No, this definitely _not_ the afterlife."

Balthier focused on her for the first time, "Have we met?" he asked her. He had the distinct feeling that he had met her before.

"I think I would remember meeting someone like you," she flicked her long, wet hair out of her face, "Puffy shirt? Dude, that is _so_ eighteenth century."

The pirate huffed, not impressed with her comment, "And which century is it here?" he asked with a slight sneer.

"The twenty-first," she replied flatly, she checked Vayne's breathing again and rolled him onto his side. "So you're from Ivalice as well, huh?" she smiled as she stood up, her black T-shirt clung to her body, hugging her curves, which she made clear was uncomfortable, "Listen, I'm gonna get changed, these things," she tugged at her shirt, "are really annoying." She turned to enter the house when the roar of something large falling through the air followed by the sickening crunch of metal impacting with the earth.

Balthier looked on in horror, "I'll kill him," he whispered weakly, unable to move as the others rushed past to the crash, "My baby!" Ghis remaining with Vayne's unconscious form by the pool, dialiong on his phone for an ambulance.

Fran arrived there first, her strength tearing the hatch off its hinges with little effort, "Is everyone alright?" she called in.

Ashe climbed to her feet carefully, "I'm fine, and so are Vaan and Penelo." Vaan rubbed his head where he bumped it on the control column and Penelo had reached for those in the cabin behind the cockpit.

Larsa was fine, his hand reach for the first person who entered the cabin, the girl who had saved Vayne. "Come on kid, on your feet," she said as she lifted him up, "are you hurt at all?"

The lights flickered weakly before dying completely; Larsa waved the dust out of his face, "I am fine, thank you, Miss …?" his eyes narrowed on her face.

"Just call me Ash," she smiled down at the boy, "You should head up to the house, get ye'self a coke or somethin'."

Fran had gone straight to Basch and his injured brother, Vossler popped his head in to the cabin now, Ashe looked up as he did so, "Vossler?" her words filled with shock, "How?" her eyes filled with tears of anger and relief.

"Not now, You're Highness," he pleaded, "You best leave this structure before it collapses around you."

She nodded and scooted passed everyone and joined Larsa, Penelo and Vaan outside.

"He still lives?" Fran asked Basch, referring to his twin.

"For now," he replied glumly, protectively holding his brother in his arms.

The girl from the pool crouched next to him, checking Gabranth's pulse, "It's weak but steady," she commented, removing his coverings to check his body. Basch looked at the girl suspiciously as her hands roamed his injured brother's chest, "feels like a few broken ribs," she clicked her fingers in Gabranth's face to see if he responded. He did, his eyes opening wearily, "can you hear me?" she asked him, he nodded. "How many fingers am I holding up?" she held up two in front of him.

"Two," his voice clear but slow.

"Does your head hurt at all?" she felt his scalp for bumps.

He sighed at the tender touch, "a little," he closed his eyes, relishing in the first gentle caress he had felt in a long time.

She pulled back, much to his disappointment, "your head's fine, but your body needs some care, I'll call for another ambulance." She went to pull her phone out of her pocket, "Shit! My phone!" she hastily pulled the battery out, "Fuck!"

Basch looked at her, she was soaking wet, her long hair clinging to her face and shoulders but he saw it, the same kind eyes, albeit green instead of violet, the same nose, jaw and perfect lips, "Impossible!" he cried faintly. He realised she had given him an instruction.

"I'm sure a strong looking guy, like yourself can carry him out of here," the girl even had the same patronising tone that she had, "How else can we get him some help?"

"Where are you taking him?" Fran asked calmly. Helping Basch lift his brother, Fran guided them out of the wreckage.

"The hospital," the girl replied flatly.

Vossler returned to the ship, nobody noticing he had gone in the first place. "I have some bad news," he stated dryly, "the paramedics are on strike." He looked grimly down at the battered blond in his comrades arms.

"Could you go get Alex up?" she asked him as they exited the Strahl, "He has to drive the other guy." She looked at Basch, "Can you carry him out to the car?" Vossler jogged towards the house.

"Yes," he answered without hesitation, heaving Gabranth fully into his arms and followed the girl and Fran away from what was left of the Strahl. The sun bright and hurting his eyes, did blind him enough to miss Balthier with a choker hold on Vaan, screaming something about never trusting him the anything again. He saw Ashe yelling at the pirate to let Vaan go and Penelo walking away with Larsa towards the pool where Vayne rested with Ghis at his side. He then spotted his old friend, running with none other then Prince Alesius.

"Alex," the girl called, jogging up to him, "did you know the ambos were on strike?"

"Yes," he replied, staring at the new addition to the property, "it happened again didn't it." He walked straight up to Gabranth, giving him a checking, more intensive than the one the girl gave, "possible internal bleeding. Ash!" the girl turned back around, Basch could not help staring at the girl looked almost identical to his princess, only wet. "Get your car, take this one and I'll grab the other, meet me at the emergency room."

"Yep," Ash raced off to the house, Basch ran to keep up. The girl emerged again with a set of keys, "this way big guy." She led him around a red, sleek looking vehicle and opened the back door fir them. She climbed into the car and buckled herself in; Basch did the same, followed by his brother before she started the thing and sped out of the driveway, closely followed by a grey van.

* * *

Vossler managed to separate Vaan from Balthier, or more accurately the other way around, the man's massive bulk lifting the two off the ground and holding them apart, "Balthier it's not the Lad's fault," he growled at the irate pirate, "Sky stones don't work here."

Ashe walked up him, "Put them down, Vossler," she asked, laying her hand gently on his arm.

He obeyed reluctantly, watching the boys scamper back away from him. Balthier to Fran's side who promptly slapped him up side the head, "Ow! What was that for?" he asked grumpily.

"Because you're behaving like an idiot," she replied nonchalantly, "It is most unbecoming."

"You're right, my dear," he straightened himself up, brushing the creases out of his sleeves, "Thank you, I almost lost it there."

Ashe did not take her eyes off Vossler, the large man stood under her scrutiny, her gaze burning into him, "Perhaps we could go inside?" he asked weakly, averting his eyes from hers.

"No," she glared, "I wouldn't want to make a mess in the home of our hosts."

Now Vossler had never shown fear anywhere, not even in battle, but Ashelia's damning gaze tore away his courage, "As you wish …" Before he finished his sentence, Ashe caught him with a right hook to his face, knocking him off balance and tumbling to the ground.

"You worthless, traitorous bastard!" she screeched, standing over him, "Why did you do it?"

He held his hands up in surrender, "It was a moment of weakness and desperation, my lady," he hastily explained, "I lost faith in our cause!"

"You miserable amoeba," she spat at him, "What did they promise you, what was your price!"

"You," he sighed, bracing himself for another attack.

"What?" his answer took her by surprise, "No treasure, no positions of power?"

He rose to his feet, "I had to make sure you were out of their hands, safe, even at the cost of my honour and life."

Forcing herself to remain angry with him, she marched inside, joining Fran and Balthier for a beverage from the refrigerator. Vossler just watched her, feeling worse than he had before.

* * *

Alex had called ahead to the hospital to ready the emergency department for their arrival. Larsa sat with his older brother on the middle row of seats in the van, his battered and bruised body giving him the appearance of a victim rather than the tyrant he had been. However, after all he had done, Larsa could not hate his brother, he hated what Vayne had done to Ivalice and their father and brothers, Larsa hoped that Vayne would have a change of heart and redeem himself for the sake of his own soul. "How is he holding up?" Alex called from the driver's seat, speeding through a red light.

"He still breathes, but the bruising is getting worse around his head," the young prince replied wearily, "Are we almost there?"

"We are," Alex pulled up in front of a red brick building, not unlike those found in Archades. He jumped out of the car and opened the sliding door for the hospital staff to retrieve the unconscious form of Vayne. He looked up to see that his sister had already arrived and was sitting in the waiting room with the blond man that had travelled with her. As the nurses wheeled Vayne away, Alex walked up to Ash, "how is your patient?" he asked her.

"Internal bleeding and a few broken ribs," she explained, "he is lucky he got help when he did, otherwise he would be dead."

Basch seemed to sigh with that comment, he looked exhausted. "Anyway," Alex continued, "I have to scrub up, the lad's brother may need surgery that I specialise in so …" he pulled his wallet out and handed Ash a handful of yellow notes, "get yourselves a bite to eat, I'm sure they will keep you up to date on what happens." He walked through the double grey doors.

The Basch and Larsa sat quietly watching the grey doors in front of them. The girl walked out to the cafeteria and loaded a tray with sandwiches and fruit juice for everyone. She returned to the waiting room and handed each of them a sandwich and juice and sat next to them, tucking into her share. "I'm Ash, by the way," she introduced herself; opening the triangular packaging her sandwich was in, "As you guessed, my brother's Alex."

Basch could not believe it, she even shared her name, "Ashelia?" he asked her, testing the waters.

"Ashling," she corrected him, "So you know that princess chick too huh?" she chuckled quietly, "Vossy wouldn't shut up about her at first, but he told me that if he ever saw her again he would make it up to her … what ever that means."

Larsa listened intently to the conversation; he knew what happened, Penelo had told him on their way to Mt Bur Omisace, Vossler, another of Vayne's pawns. "He made a terrible mistake," Basch informed her, but didn't elaborate, "How long has he and Ghis been here?"

"Nearly six months," she explained between bites of her lunch, "there were three other survivors found with them, two died but one's in a coma here at the hospital." She pointed up, indicating the patient's location, "Ghis said her name is Gormlaith, she was a scientist or something."

"Why is she in a coma?" Larsa asked, speaking for the first time since arriving.

"She had suffered a blow to her head," she threw her packaging in the near by bin, "Did you know her?"

The boy shook his head, returning to eat quietly. Basch had eaten two sandwiches and was starting on his third; Ash watched him eat in awe, he caught her expression, "I'm sorry," he blushed slightly, "food has been scarce for me for the last three years."

She smiled sweetly, identical to Ashe's smiles from years past, "I could get you some more if you like," she offered, rising from her seat.

Basch wanted to accept, but he thought it would be polite to decline, "I believe I have eaten enough," he could not help but return the grin.

"Don't be silly," she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, "You looked famished, your frame says that you were once much larger."

He blinked in surprise, "How did you know?"

"Bone structure, dude," she left to retrieve more food for him. As she returned, a nurse stood explaining Gabranth's process to Basch.

"… but there is one problem," Ash heard the plump, middle-aged woman say, "We have run out of O negative blood."

"I'm O negative," Ash announced, handing Basch the savoury morsels of meat pies and a few chocolate bars.

"Are you a registered blood donor?" the nurse asked excitedly.

"Yeah," Ash nodded, "But it's been a while."

The woman smiled a mischievous grin, "Then let's drain you already!" she chirped, grabbing Ash by the arm to drag her away.

"Wait!" Basch called, "May I speak to Ashling first?"

The woman cocked an eyebrow; "are you close to miss King?" she seemed excited by the apparent closeness she mistakenly saw. "Finally moving on from Russell?"

Ash's face burned red, much to Basch's curiosity, "Who's Russell?" he asked cautiously.

"Don't worry about it," she waved off the question, "He's a friend." She walked aside with the blond knight, "Now," she said in a lowered voice, "What's up?"

Basch moved her so the nurse could not see what he was doing, "I need you to drink this," he handed her a small bluish-purple phial.

"What is it?" Ash asked curiously.

He placed it in her hands, "It's a megalixar," he explained quietly, "drink it and then donate your blood. It will help with Noah's healing … speed it up."

Ash nodded, "Mrs Winterbottom?" she called out to the nurse, "I need to go to the loo first, if that's alright?"

The nurse had been chatting to Larsa, "Alright dear, just hurry, okay?"

"Yep," she said, slipping the phial into her pocket and disappearing into the toilets.

Basch sat back down next to Larsa, the nurse watched him with a studious eye, "treat her well, she's been through a lot in the last couple of years," the nurse said to him.

"I …" he stopped when he saw Ash return.

"Okay Blondie," she said with a nervous grin, "you're coming too."

The nurse smiled, "Why do I have to come with you?" he asked, confused.

"She has a needle phobia," the nurse informed him, "She's doing a lot for your brother."

It was then he noticed her face had paled, "Ash? Are you alright?"

Without looking up she replied, "Peachy," her words were dry and distracted.

"Come on deary," the woman grasped her hand; it will be over in a few minutes. They walked towards the grey doors, Basch looked back to Larsa who shooed him away and returned to watching the television hanging from the wall; the knight followed the woman to a small room with charts on the walls and an uncomfortable looking chair. "Please sit, Ash," the nurse guided the now shaking girl to the chair; Basch was reminded of a prisoner awaiting their execution.

Instinctually, he held the trembling girl's hand, "Look at me Ashling," he soothingly called, she complied, "That's it, now keep your eyes on me, it will be alright." She flinched as the long clear tube with a sharp stainless steel needle was inserted in the crook of her arm. Basch felt faint himself as he watched the clear tube turn red with her blood, "So what do you do here?" he asked her, trying to distract from the nauseating scene, "are you a doctor like your brother?"

"I'm a musician," she said weekly, "And I dance."

The nurse snorted, "What you do is not dancing, missy!"

"That's your opinion," her voice not escalating like the princess's would have, "I don't criticise people's choices, _Mistress Carolin_." She gave a knowing smile and the nurse looked away.

"What instrument do you play?" Basch manoeuvred the conversation back to where he wanted it, his eyes falling back to the blood extraction, he watched the little bag slowly fill as it was rocked back and forth and felt the sputum rise in his throat.

"Anything used in a regular rock band," she began, "Guitar, Bass, Drums and Piano … well Keyboard, but there is not much difference there." She squeezed his hand to distract him again, "I thought you were to be helping me, not the other way 'round." The fallen knight looked back at her, not realising his attention had reverted to the filling bag of blood.

"I'm sorry," he said, "I use to sing when I was young, both Noah and I did, but years of yelling commands in a hot desert can kill your voice."

"I can see that would hinder you, but if you enjoy it then who cares?" she chuckled weakly, "you should here Alex after he's had a few at Christmas, he sound like he's strangling a cat!"

"Oh you are a wicked girl, Ashling Bernadette King," the nurse piped up again, "he's just too shy to sing when sober."

"I can't sing at all either, so I don't know why you have to defend his lack of talent?" she giggled to the nurse, "At least I have the sense to keep my mouth shut."

"Your voice doesn't sound awful," Basch informed her, "perhaps all you need is to practice?"

There was a gentle knock on the door, it was another nurse; "um, Ash?" the young man asked timidly, "The man you brought in is out of surgery and is in recovery right now."

Basch felt a wave of relief wash over him, his brother would live, "When can we see him?" he asked the man.

"About an hour, he still needs blood but he will be fine in a few weeks," the man left and Mrs Winterbottom removed the horrid needle from Ash's arm.

Ash sighed and slumped back in the chair, "Glad that's over," she watched the nurse leave the room with her donation, "I hate doing that."

"Then why did you do it?"

She gave him an incredulous glare, "I will not be responsible for a death I could prevent," her gaze softened, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have spoken to you like that." She smiled at him reluctantly. For a moment, they remained silent; Basch did not know what to say to her. Her eyes, just like the princess's, showed an aged depth to them she should not have had at such a young age; he wanted to ask her questions as to why but the nurse returned with a plate of biscuits and a coffee each for them.

"I just saw your brother, Basch; he is conscious but is not willing to respond right now," she left again, leaving the two alone once more.

"He is feeling guilty," Basch thought aloud.

Ash dunked a ginger biscuit in her beverage and ate it, "it's probably the anaesthetic, some people just want to sleep after a big op like that," she explained, sipping her coffee, "I know I did."

He looked at her with renewed curiosity, "What happed to you?"

She shrugged nonchalantly, "I had my appendix out a year ago," she lifted her shirt and pulled her jeans down slightly to show him a tiny scar, "Key-hole surgery is a fantastic thing." She relaxed, watching Basch mimic her actions with the offering they were presented with.

He liked these biscuits, spicy and addictive with the coffee he drank, "did it hurt?"

"Nah!" she laughed, "when I first felt the inflammation it hurt, but I was in good hands, Alex's ex-wife did it, she's really good."

"Ex-wife?" he asked confused with the statement, "How does one become an _Ex_-wife?"

Still sipping her coffee, she explained, "They were childhood sweethearts," she began, "they married before they went off to med-school, but after they graduated, they finally knew each other properly. She was gay." She sipped her coffee once more, "So they divorced and she moved into one of the townhouses."

"Marriage in Ivalice is forever," he said in a defensive way, "Until the death."

"Such a romantic notion," she said, "But I know first hand what that can cause, my father is a two time divorcee, and I think he's working on a third." She finished her beverage and stood up, "Silly old fool."

Basch laughed at her statement and followed her back out to the waiting room to see Larsa talking to the nurse again, she had also given the young prince a beverage and some biscuits, but he had chocolate-coated ones. They joined them and relaxed, waiting for when Noah would be fine to receive visitors.

* * *

Ashe sat in the living room, watching Vaan and Penelo figure out how to work the television when Vossler's offer to help was rejected by the teens, clearly they too, still felt the betrayal deeply. The princess nearly laughed as the two bickered over the remote control; they randomly pushed buttons and shook it until finally the television flickered to life with a cooking show.

"Hay maybe coming to this place wasn't a complete loss," Vaan chortled, "you might actually learn how to cook!" Penelo's face burned red; she pushed him and walked out of the room in a huff.

"Vaan, that was mean," Ashe chastised the thief, "she's your friend and you berated her cooking skills! May I remind you of you're terrible stew you made with … what was that meat again?"

"Cockatrice," he grumbled, realising she was right, Penelo may not be a very good cook, but she out did him in that department, "I'll go find her," he surrendered following his friend out of the room. Balthier dodged the juvenile blond as he ran past him and sat next to Ashe on the couch.

"Lemonade?" he offered Ashe a cold glass of sparkling clear liquid with ice floating on the surface and a straw.

"Thank you, Balthier," she took a sip and sighed, "This is greatly appreciated." She watched the man on the television cut up some meat and fry it.

"What ever that is, it looks delicious," the pirate commented, staring at the television and his stomach grumbled, "That reminds me, we haven't eaten since before the battle on the Bahamut."

The Princess nodded, her gaze glued to the cooking on the screen, "we should see what there is to eat."

The two left for the kitchen and saw Ghis leaning against the breakfast bar, reading a newspaper. He looked up at them and smiled, he reminded himself that they probably still viewed him as the enemy, something he knew he would have to correct. "Can I be of assistance?" he asked politely, ignoring he suspicious looks they gave him.

"We are just looking for some food," Balthier said calmly, keeping his cautious eyes on the former Judge Magister.

Ghis folded the newspaper up and laid it on the bench. He looked at them and smiled as genuinely as he could, "I'll find you something, and for the others too." And like a host of a party, he busied himself with making sandwiches for everyone on a large plate.

Vaan and Penelo seemed not to have a problem with the offered food and tucked in instantly, "What is the filling?" Penelo asked with her mouth full.

"Ham with mustard pickles," Ghis replied, working on more sandwiches until the new loaf of white bread was finished. Ashe hesitantly took one as did Balthier, but they quickly forgot their doubts once they took a bite. It was ambrosia, the best food they ever tasted, well it felt like it, nearly eight hours without food just to defeat Vayne, the four hours since the Strahl crashed in the field, fatigue, and hunger had set in hard. Fran had made off with the big bowl of fruit shortly after they arrived and was hiding out in the fernery, but nobody had noticed her absence.

The former Judge grinned at the satisfaction on everybody's faces, he knew that they were once enemies, but like what Alex had said, _new planet, new life, your past means nothing here._ He was right; Ghis had spent countless nights re-thinking his life as a Judge Magister for the Empire and it had not lead to anything he had hoped for. Sure, life in a position of authority had its perquisites but he was left with the constant paranoia of a double crossing or the feeling of being utterly alone had hardened him over the years. In the weeks after his treatment for the mist burns, Alex offered he and Vossler a place to live, the both of them accepted reluctantly but Ghis was certain that they had no other option.

"Thank you," Ashe said after she finished her last morsel, pulling Ghis back to the present, "I see that you have changed over the last few months." She tried hard to make eye contact with him; however, she could not bring herself to do it.

"My pleasure milady," he bowed, respectively, "the Empire is a distant memory here, it means nothing to me anymore."

"Glad to hear it," Balthier chirped, "What is this place anyway?" he changed the conversation, whether Ghis truly believed what he said or not about the Empire, the topic still made the pirate's skin crawl.

"It was meant to be a hotel, well that's what Alex told us, but it ended up being a large house with many bedrooms," he explained, leaning back against the bench, "Each room has a large king size bed, an _En Suite_, a wardrobe, a TV and internet access." The pair stared at him blankly, not understanding what he meant. "There is also a pool to swim in during the summer and a spa to relax in when ever you want." They still stared, "Believe me when I say you will be comfortable here."

"So there is no way to return to Ivalice?" Ashe asked quietly, expecting a not so positive answer.

"I do not believe so," the answer she expected, "but I confess, I have not tried either."

"Why not?" Balthier enquired, finding it amusing that a Judge would not try to return.

"I think the mist brought us here," Ghis put the kettle on, "Cuppas?"

"What?" Ashe nearly giggled at his uncharacteristic wording.

"Sorry, hot beverage?" he corrected, "the local dialect is infectious and you will fall into using it from time to time."

They accepted his offer and found Ghis to be a rather nice person once the Empire was no longer an issue. They learnt he had a new life as, of all things, a justice of the peace and worked closely with the local law enforcement with issuing warrants. He told them that he liked the laid-back approach to do the right thing. He also had friend on the internet thing he spoke of from all over the world, which made Ivalice feel quite small. There was a woman in a place called Ireland who wrote to him frequently, but like a typical man, Ashe thought, missed the signals she was sending him. It was true that he had found peace on Earth, something that Ivalice could never give him once he entered the Akademy.

"What of Vossler?" Ashe asked, "How is he adapting?"

The former judge saddened, "he feels guilty for what he did to you, milady. At first he blamed me but Ashling set him straight." He sighed solemnly, "He has not found direction yet, I had hoped he would enter into something fulfilling, but his depression has not eased. He does spend a lot of time with Alex when he is home."

"I have not met them yet," Ashe said, "what are they like?"

Ghis smiled, "Ashling is like you, same hair-colour, same build, but she has eyes like brilliant emeralds."

"She looks like me?" the princess was taken aback, "How is that possible?"

"How is not the issue, it just is," the older man resolved, "Perhaps it is just a coincidence?"

"Yes," Ashe concluded, "Perhaps it is." She became uncomfortable, "I think I will go to apologise to Vossler, do you know where he is?"

Ghis smiled, "he probably is in his room, third door on the left on the third floor." He pointed to the staircase and she headed off.

* * *

Vossler sat in his room at the desk, William, Alex's younger brother, had made him. He was trying to read the news on the internet, watching other people's troubles made him feel better usually, yet the Princess's presence and reaction to seeing him again played over in his mind. Yes he felt guilty, yes, he was sorry for betraying her mission, but his oath to Raminas that fateful day was to protect Ashe no matter the cost. Basch had made the same oath, but his incarceration in Nalbina had left him alone to protect the Princess. That time had altered his feelings for her; did he love her? Yes, but how? Was it a romantic love or a plutonic love? She was no longer just his charge to guard with his life, she became his best friend, Ashe filled the void Basch's absence had left. Over time they grew close, fighting and drinking like brothers in arms; he remembered how proud, yet disappointed her was when she successfully won a drinking contest with a few of the young men in the resistance, much like his youth in the Order.

Ashe stood outside his bedroom door, she wanted to knock, but did not know what to say after he answered the door. Guilt began to seed in the pit of her stomach; she had forgiven Basch before she knew he was framed for the assassination of her father, could she give the same to Vossler? Could she forgive him for his actions? For the betrayal of Dalmasca, she could, but would she forgive the betrayal of her friendship with him? She did not have an answer. An apology for her actions earlier was needed, she had made up her mind on that, however, knowing Vossler he would stare at her until she revealed her feeling on the matter of his treachery. She smiled; he behaved that way when she caught him bathing in the Nebra River naked one night. She had been without her husband for a year or so and the sight of a well-sculpted body, wet and glistening under the full moon was too much for her to resist. Huddled behind some boulders near the river's bank she watched him remove his armour and his clothing; her face burned red when she watched him descend into the cool waters of the Nebra, the moonlight enhancing each curve of his chiselled form, masculinity oozing from each pour in his flesh. He was oblivious to his audience near by as he took full advantage of his solitude. Ashe felt her cheeks burn from the memory, the shock in his eyes, her unwavering gaze and the sudden panic that erupted from the knight as he dove for his clothing to cover his nudity; she could not apologise to him then either, not right away. The fact that she was caught was not the worst of it, his insufferable smug grin he wore for the weeks following was more than embarrassing; she wished she remained at the camp that night instead of wandering the desert alone. Vossler had warned her of the potential dangers of such an act, she never realised that _He_ was one of those dangers. The memory had stirred regret for her treatment of him earlier, Vossler had only been surprised and happy to see her and she attacked him; what would her father think?

She did not have time to ponder the hypothetical situation as Vossler opened the door; "Ashe? What are you doing here?"

Her cheeks burned like that night in the Estersand, "Um …" Damnit! He stared at her bright red face, his eyes burrowing into hers. No! She thought.

"Ashe, I am glad you are here," he said softly, offering his hand like the old days. Without thinking too hard, she accepted his offered hand and joined him in his room.

Her eyes widened at the colourful abstract pictures that covered the walls, "Did you draw those?" she asked in wonder, "What are they?"

"They are Mandalas and yes I created them," he gestured her to sit down; "Ashling showed me how to make them."

"What did they do?"

Vossler joined her on the edge of his bed, "they help clear my mind when I make them."

"Oh," she looked at each one before turning her focus to the man she had hurt, "Vossler, I …"

He cut her off, "Ashe I am so sorry for hurting you." His words stunned her into silence, "I acted selfishly when I should have consulted you on the matter first."

"Vossler it doesn't matter anymore," she said after a moment of silence, "Ivalice might as well be a memory now that we are here on … what is this place called again?"

"Earth," he answered her, "and no, I will not forget my indiscretion; you were perfectly justified with your outburst earlier, I deserve to suffer for my treachery."

She rested her hand on his, "With what I understand, you have suffered enough," she leaned in on his shoulder, "Ghis told us of your sadness and the anger you have for yourself. I forgive you, Vossler." It was now Vossler's turn to be stunned, he was expecting Ashe to blow up like before and hit him for his treasonous behaviour with their last mission together, however that was not to be. Perhaps it was the shock of falling into another world, where she was an unknown and had no course to fight for; all the stress and pressures she expected to have by now would never come. "What is this world like?" she asked him, like the way she did when she was a child in the Palace.

"It is bigger than Ivalice and many wars rage on nearly every continent in some form," he explained, "Royalty is nothing more than titles and expensive decorations and the biggest problems that face Earth is Climate change, Terrorism and the antics of celebrities."

Ashe giggled, "What famous people do? Hasn't this world got anything better to do than watch how someone else lives?"

"But Ashe," he protested playfully, "Sex scandals, drug scandals and domestic violence scandals are all that matters!" they both laughed aloud until their thoughts turned to the two men in the hospital. "Are you upset that Basch took his brother to save his life?"

"No," she replied softly, "he risked his life for us, if it were not for Gabranth; Vayne would never have been defeated."

Vossler nodded, "And what of Vayne? If he recovers from his injuries, what then?"

"We will deal with that when the time comes," she said dryly, "if it ever does, we were not exactly gentle with him."

"I would have been disappointed if you had."

* * *

Alex examined the MRI scans of Vayne's head, and it did not look good. Ominous dark patches over the frontal lobe, the temporal lobe and the parietal lobe, "Damnit!" he cursed, "blood clots!" he studied the images intently, "Nancy?" he called to his assistant next to him, "has Frank finished with him yet?"

"Not yet, Alex," she sighed, "he was worse than the blond guy your sister brought in, they've had to remove a kidney, his spleen and a large section of his small intestine. He will need some work on his spine once you're done with his head."

"His wounds resemble those of servicemen from the front line," Alex shook his head in disgust, "What did this poor man do to deserve this?"

"What ever it was, Doctor," Nancy sighed, "we are in for a long night."

* * *

Basch, Larsa and Ash waited for the nurse to come back to lead them to see Noah. Ash's clothes had dried and the trio were restless from waiting. "Noah is ready to see you now," a skinny auburn haired nurse announced shyly, "If you will follow me?"

Basch and Larsa stood up but Ash remained in her seat, "He will want to see you too, Ashling," Basch told her.

"He doesn't know me," she smiled, "He needs his family right now."

"He will want to see the woman who saved his life," the knight argued.

"It's true miss," the nurse supported Basch's argument, "He asked for the angel who fought of death so he may live."

Ash shuddered, "I though he didn't have any brain damage," she gave a nervous grin, "When was the last time he had his eyes tested?"

The nurse grumbled, "You have been called for, you must go," she begged Ash to just go.

"Oh alright," she relented and followed the others to the intensive care ward.

* * *

The ward was a long but empty one, several empty beds lined the wall and along the windows, Noah occupied the bed closest the door. He was attached to a bag of blood, a bag of clear liquid and a blue box with three coloured lined jumping across the screen. He was awake yet lethargic, staring out at the sun set through the window. "Gabranth!" Larsa called happily, running to the invalid man in the hospital bed. Noah smiled warmly at the boy, accepting his hug.

"I am happy to see you too, my lord," he uttered to the young boy, who would not let go.

"How are you feeling, brother?" Basch was the next to speak; he sat next to the bed on the provided chair, "how do you feel?"

"Like I've been hit by an angry Seeq," he smiled as best he could, "but a lot better than I did earlier." His eyes drifted to the Ash, who stood back, letting him have time those he knew and loved; "My Angel," he reached to her.

Ash felt awkward, "Just call me Ash," she told him, "Everyone else does." She edged forward, not wanting to impose on the reunion. "Anyway, If you knew me, you'd no I am no angel," she smiled awkwardly.

"Please," Noah begged, "I only wish to see the woman who saved me." This made Ash blush, "I beg you, don't be shy, Ash."

She relented, moving closer to the end of the bed and smiled at him, "What do I say? I don't even know you." She tried to sound gentle but it was the truth, for most of the time she knew him, he was unconscious on the operating table in theatre twelve.

"We can start now?" Noah suggested, his eyes warm and caring.

"Whoa, hold on there," Ash protested, "I don't do the Florence Nightingale thing, you got a pint of my blood, isn't that enough?" she retreated to the empty hallway.

"What did I say?" Noah asked Basch, "I was only trying to be nice."

"I think she's shy," Larsa said, fiddling with the tubes that were attached to Noah's left hand.

"Can you please leave them be, Lord Larsa," Noah begged, nervously, "I need those to live."

"Sorry," he placed his hands in his lap.

Basch cleared his throat, "I believe that hospitals make her nervous." Noah's eyes pleaded with him to go get her; "fine, I'll get her." he walked to the door to find her leaning against the wall with a distant look in her eyes. "Will you please come back?"

She turned to look at him, "What do I say to him? He's had the shit kicked out of him, dropped into a foreign world, major surgery, and a pint of my blood with that funky tasting blue stuff in it."

"Anything you want, he's just survived a life threatening situation and he's looking for some small comfort in his agony," the blond knight explained, "Give him a chance."

"Okay, fine," she sighed exasperatedly, "but if he flirts with me I'm outta here."

"Don't take it personally," Basch chuckled, "That's just the way he is."

She looked at him, cocking her eyebrow with displeasure, "Alright." Ash followed him into the I.C. ward again, this time Basch coaxed her to sit beside Noah's bed instead of standing at the foot. Noah's eyes brightened again, he could not understand why she left like she did. Truth be told, if the situation was reversed, he would have done the same thing, he never was any good at providing comfort to those who needed it, it was as if the gods were trying to teach him a lesson for being so distant with the world. "I'm sorry about before," she managed to mumble into her chest.

The Judge smiled at her reaction, "thank you," he said, not knowing what to say. "And I'm sorry for making you feel awkward." He reached for her hand, "now I have a favour to ask," he said with a twinkle in his eye, "Could you touch my hair the way you did when you found us?"

She jerked her head to meet his gaze, "When I checked for injuries?" her astonishment at his request not missed by anyone.

"Yes," he replied sheepishly, "My head to be precise."

Ashling smirked at his blush, she giggled quietly at his request, "sure," her lyrical voice echoed through the room. She reached out and gently began to caress his hair, "How's that?"

Noah sighed, "Our mother use to do this for me when I was little," he explained, leaning into her hand, "When ever I was sick or hurt, she would relax me with her gentle touch."

Basch groaned, his words were true to a point, but he also use to argue with their mother whenever she attempted to do it; however, his negative thoughts melted away upon seeing a small tear escape Noah's eye.

"I'm not hurting you, am I?" Ash asked worried at the sight of the tear.

"No," he nuzzled into her hand, "I miss a gentle hand; the Magistrate does not allow softness in the ranks."

"What do they do?" Ash asked innocently, "Beat you up until they break you?" his eyes shot open in shock. "I was kidding …"

Noah relaxed; her random guess had taken him by surprise, he remembered how much the other male cadets hated him for his Landian blood and rugged good looks; it made his three years there very difficult. He remembered all the problems he had when he wanted give his attentions to one of the female cadets; although he could never prove any of it, the _prank_ had left his back scared and partially numb. He had lost the chance with the girl, who fell into the arms of the one he suspected had orchestrated the exploding locker. He remembered the bitterness he felt then, but it ebbed away with the gentle caresses Ashling executed blissfully to his scalp.

"Okay," the nurse said entering the room again, "the patient needs some rest."

Ash retrieved her hand, "you're right, it's getting late and I'm sure the others are wondering where we are." She sent Noah an encouraging smile, "I'll bring anyone you want to see tomorrow if you like?"

Basch had noticed the sudden sadness that entered his brother's eyes again. "You must rest, brother," he tried to consol him, "I am sure you will see us in the morning," he moved in close to Noah's ear and whispered: "Do not talk about Ivalice to these people; I believe they are oblivious to our world and Ash thinks we should keep it that way."

Noah nodded in agreement, "Ash, will you also visit tomorrow?" he managed a weak smile for her.

"If you want me to," she returned the smile, "but I will probably have to drive these guys here anyway." Without thinking, she gave Noah a quick peck to his cheek, "see ya tomorrow!" she glide from the room.

The judge touched his cheek in disbelief, but his shock was short lived as young Lord Larsa gave him a not so gentle hug. Larsa, upon realising his boisterous actions, straightened himself, "Sorry, Gabranth. I will be here in the morning to visit you, and Vayne if I am able to." He too, walked from the room, leaving Basch to say his good-byes.

"After all that I have done to you," Noah commented remorsefully, "you still saved me."

Basch raised a brow, "you are my brother, nothing will change that; however it was Ashling who saved you with her blood."

Noah chuckled, "you think I am a dunce? I know the affects of a megalixer when I feel it."

The knight grinned, "As I said you are my brother and we have nearly twenty years to make up for."

"And you intend to get it," the judge smiled back, "I wonder what our parents would think of us now?"

"Dad would be glad that we are finally back on speaking terms," Basch said warmly, "Mum too." Basch gave his brother a hug, "until tomorrow."

"Yes," Noah nodded, "tomorrow." He watched his brother leave and the nurse came back in and began to adjust the height of his bed and began to push him out of the room. "Where are we going?"

The nurse said nothing only guiding him to the elevator and they ascended to the third floor to another ward. She assembled everything again and handed him a white box with a cable hanging out of one end and a couple of dials. She hit the button in the top corner and the television flickered on with the nightly news. Without a word, she left leaving Noah to learn about this planet that he was now a resident of.

* * *

Ash chatted with Nancy as the others caught up with her; the girls had equally grim expressions on their faces. "So I'll be back tomorrow to pick him up," Ash finished solemnly.

"What's going on?" Larsa cut in, in an authoritative tone.

Ash turned to look at the boy, "Your brother has just come out of one surgery," she explained, "However he will be going into another shortly to remove several clots from his brain, then have steel rods put in his back to save his spine."

Basch heard this also, how could a man survive such torturous procedures? He watched Larsa hold a brave face as the news sank in; yes, Vayne had lived through the battle that almost claimed all their lives but will that life be worth living? Ashling tried to comfort the young man, "I'm alright," he said, "I had prepared myself for his death. Knowing that there is a faint chance that he might live is not something I had planned."

"Are you the boy's guardian?" Nancy asked Basch.

"Until my brother is well, yes I am," he replied curtly.

"I wish to discuss organ donation," the nurse explained.

The knight short Ash a questioning glance, he had never heard of organ donation. "In the event of Vayne's death, they will harvest his internal organs to save another's life," she informed him.

Basch nodded for the nurse to continue, "Will you please talk it over with your young charge? We are desperately low on donors and there are many on the waiting list," the sincerity of the woman's voice touched his heart, he had not met anyone this dedicated to saving lives before; this world definitely was more different too Ivalice than he thought.

"I will," he agreed, "when do you need our decision?"

"As soon as conveniently possible," she said hopefully, "There is a young girl waiting for a kidney transplant in the paediatric ward, I took the liberty to check if they were a match; they are."

"Then there is nothing to discuss," Larsa announced, "If my brother does not survive, you may harvest his organs." The three adults were stunned by the instantaneous response.

"I didn't realise you understood what we were talking about," Nancy said astonished by the young man's knowledge on the subject.

"I know enough that it could save an innocent life," he said flatly, "I don't think I could live with myself knowing that a life was lost because of indecision."

Nancy smiled, "That is the most intelligent and compassionate response I have ever heard in regards to Organ donation," she resisted giving the young man a hug, "You know, I have a daughter around your age, she goes to Holy Virgin Collage."

Larsa just gave her a blank expression.

"He's home schooled," Ash rescued him from Nancy trying to get her daughter interested in boys, "Anyway he's only twelve." Ash knew that Nancy suspected that her daughter was gay, but the girl was only young and just not ready to think like that yet.

"Only for another few days," he added.

"Damnit! You should've said somethin' earlier!" Ash cried, "I can put out a spread."

"A spread of what?" he asked, innocently. Basch leaned into his ear and explained that it must meant a party of another type of celebration, which Larsa seemed to like that idea.

"We should get going," Ash finally said to Nancy, "Tell Alex that I'll take care of dinner and that he is to call me as soon as he is done, so I can drive him home."

Nancy nodded and they parted ways.

* * *

Balthier had gotten bored with waiting around the house; he had joined Fran in the garden for a few minutes before loosing her to the large building with what looked like wrecks in them. Knowing that her curiosity had gotten the better of her, he returned to the house to explore the vastness of the building. The multitude of rooms boggled his mind at first, with the exception of the four rooms already occupied; they all looked the same. Returning to one of the empty occupied rooms, he began to snoop like the good little sky pirate he was. First the clothing draws, some people kept valuables there. Opening the first draw, he spotted a small wooden box, "Bingo," he mumbled to himself, opening the box. To his surprise, an expensive diamond set in what looked like a fine silver ring sat nestled on a pillow of midnight blue velvet. He inspected the ring with intent; the internal side of the ring had an engraving that caught his attention: _Be My Princess, My Wife._ He found it odd that such a fine piece of jewellery would be kept hidden in a draw.

"Hay, Watchya doin'?" Vaan asked, startling the pirate.

"What does it look like?" he replied irritated, "I'm _doin'_ what comes naturally." He placed the ring back, clearly it hold more value than the sum of the materials used to create it. He looked back to see where Vaan had moved to, to find him joining in with the snooping; Balthier laughed quietly at the young thief's enthusiasm.

"Whoa!" Vaan cried, holding something he had never seen before, "What is this?"

Balthier turned to see what had Vaan confused. The pirate nearly fell over laughing; Vaan was holding up a large purple phallic piece of rubber. "I believe we have figured out whose room this is," he chuckled as he moved to Vaan's side to explore the draw the thief had opened.

"What do you mean?" the blond asked, "how can you tell with this thing?" he waved the object around like a sword.

Balthier found similar objects of different colours and sizes, "I doubt that any of the males we know here would use these things," he said with a smirk, "not that I'm judging in anyway." Vaan continued to play with the object, "For the love of … Vaan doesn't it remind you of something?"

Vaan looked at it more closely; Balthier could almost here the gears in his head as it slowly dawned on him, "Yuck!" He threw it back in the draw and slammed it shut, "You could have told me!" he berated the pirate who now howled with laughter.

"You should have been more observant, Vaan," Balthier continued to laugh, "The look on your face!" he calmed down at the disgruntled expression growing across the younger man's face, "Give the woman a break, they have needs just like we do … when we get around to it."

Vaan crossed his arms and glared at him, "There are some things we are just not meant to know about!"

The pirate grinned wickedly, "to each there own, Vaan. As a sky pirate, I make it my business to know everything about the topic to _enhance_ experiences and manipulate information out of wealthy women." He sighed at the young Dalmascan's refusal to back down, "You will understand one day." He left the room, giving Vaan a patronising pat on the shoulder on his way out.

* * *

Ashe sat in the dining room, feeling as bored as the others. Penelo had found the television entertaining, but Ashe thought it was pointless to watch the lives of someone else when they had their own to lead. She found herself looking through the newspaper Ghis had left in the kitchen; this world was more complicated than the one they left. Vossler was right, the people of Earth were obsessed with the lives of celebrities with numerous photographs of movie stars doing simple things like shopping with their children or driving their cars under the influence of alcohol, which Ashe deduced was not a good idea. She began to read an article about something called a _Hadron Collider_, when she heard a strange noise, "_Meow?_" she found herself eye to eye with a white, fluffy creature with blue eyes. "_Meow?_" it went again.

"Hello," Ashe said to it, as the creature nuzzled into the hand she offered to show friendship, "You're a funny looking creature aren't you?" she stroked the fur and it began to purr.

"That's Misty," Vossler said from the doorway, "she's a cat."

"A _cat_ huh?" she continued to give attention to the cat who would not let her stop, "perhaps you're hungry? What do you eat?"

Vossler laughed, "She has already eaten; I took care of the animals' needs not too long ago."

"How many animals are there to feed?" Ashe was desperate for any form of entertainment, even the mundane ones like caring for domestic animals.

"I'll show you," he offered a hand to guide her; they left the house and travelled down the path provided. Ashe froze at the sight of the large beasts before her, like mares of some variety. "Their called horses," Vossler explained, "Their friendly," he held out his hand and one walked over. "This one is Marshall, he's the stud."

"The stud?" she asked as she rubbed the horse's nose.

"William," he explained, "he breeds them when he's actually home." He looked down at Ashe, who was still giving attention to the horse, "let me explain, William is like your older brother Uilliam; born to the land."

Uilliam had raised a baby Chocobo when he was only five years of age and use to sneak off to help in the palace gardens to help the gardeners with their daily tasks. It was unfortunate that Uilliam had died from a tooth infection when he was ten. To think that there was a man here that was like him gave her a way to reach one of the brothers she had never met. "What else does he do?" she asked as the stroked the long snout of the horse.

"He is mad about animals and wood working," Vossler explained warmly, "he's around Basch's age and currently works for his father in the family business, but he will return in due time, so you can meet him then." He then gestured to the pack of wolf-looking animals near the rear of the house, "They belong to Ashling," he informed her, "She's the one who could be your twin." Ashe nodded, watching the dogs play fight in a menacing way. "Their all female and are quite good company," he lead Ashe back into the house when they heard a car horn sound. "That would be Ashling and the others now."

* * *

Ash handed Basch and Larsa a pile of pizzas to carry into the house, she had ordered forty Hawaiian pizzas from the local Italian restaurant. Basch had noted that it was unlike anything he had ever smelt before. Larsa had already stolen a piece to eat on the way home, spilling some of the tomato sauce on his clothing in the process. The three balanced the boxes as best they could as they entered the house and deposited the meal on the kitchen bench. Ash hurried in extracting plates from the cupboards and cups for the drinks that they already had.

Basch followed Larsa's lead and took a piece to satisfy his curiosity about the strange cuisine. The delectable contrast of sweet and savoury sated his hunger perfectly. It did not take long for the others to join in the feasting. Ashe entered last, studying the features of Ashling as she struggled to hand out plates to everyone. Finally, their eyes met in dumbfounded shock. "Wow," Ashling said in disbelief, "Vossy was right."

Ashe giggled at the nickname she had given her former protector, "Amazing," she sighed with astonishment, "it's just like looking in a mirror."

"I was thinking the exact same thing," Ash laughed, "I always wanted a sister."

"Me too," Ashe stepped forward, towards her double, Ghis was right, she did have green eyes and her hair was longer. Ash pulled her into a hug, as though they were sisters who were separated at birth.

"Alex is not going to believe this," Ash said, smiling, as she pulled back, "Can't wait to see the look on Dad's face too."

"Your family lives?" Ashe could not contain her happiness at the statement, "your mother, does she also live?"

"Yeah, in Ireland," Ash pulled the princess to the bench where the food waited steaming in the boxes, "I'm going to visit her in June, you can come with me if you like."

Ashelia nearly cried, she could have a family again; Basch looked up to see the girls talking ecstatically to one another as they ate there food. He was happy for his princess, to see her smile as she did when she was child warmed his heart; maybe falling to this place was for the best. He watched Penelo and Vaan chuckle about something with Larsa and Balthier with a grease covered Fran, Vossler and Ghis also talking happily among themselves. Yes, Earth will make a comfortable home.

* * *

Well you finally made it through chapter 1


	3. Chapter 3

M-rating for this one, especially if you have a dirty mind:Þ

* * *

Chapter 2: Home Sweet Home.

Ash had shown everyone to a room; Ashe requested to stay the night with her new sister and Basch took the room next to them, his need to continue to keep an eye on the young woman he had protected for the last few months. He lay on his large, luxurious bed and listened to the girls chatter and giggle about all sorts of things, none of which he could hear clearly. He did not know if he wanted to hear what they talked about; the fact that they sounded like a couple of adolescent girls at a slumber party only made him grateful of the wall between them.

Another loud burst of laughter had him reconsidering his choice of rooms. He turned the television on to find something to occupy his thoughts and, hopefully, distract him enough from the girls to get some sleep.

The newly acquainted sisters were sitting on the bed, finding out what they could from each other in a cheery way, "So, that Balthier," Ash began, leaning forward, "he's a bit full of himself isn't he?"

Ashe laughed, "he can be really nice too, a gentleman actually."

"Yes I can imagine," Ash cleared her throat, "my my," she mockingly mimicked his voice badly, "A lady as beautiful as yourself should never sleep alone."

"He said that to me!" the girls laughed again, "the first day I met him!"

"The cad," Ash exaggerated her disapproval playfully, "We know what _He_ was after!"

Ashe leapt off the bed and reached for another bottle of cola before returning, "Want some more?"

Ash shook her head, "so," she stretched back on the mattress, "what's the hottie's story?"

Ashelia cocked her eyebrow, "Who?"

"Basch and his brother," she rolled onto her stomach, as though to emphasise her interest, "you can't tell me you hadn't noticed them!"

Ashe thought it amusing, she had thought of Basch in that way but had only seen Noah's face on the Strahl after they had defeated Vayne, "I didn't actually," she lied, "I was too focused on restoring my kingdom." A twinge of guilt stabbed at her stomach, "I wonder what everyone's doing right now."

"Hay, don't you go all melancholy on me," Ash jumped over the bed to her, giving her a sisterly embrace, "You couldn't help what happened."

"You're right," she sighed, "so you think Basch is cute?"

"Oh hell yeah!" the giggling began again, "And his brother!"

"That's just greedy!"

"You want one to yourself do you?"

"Agh! They're like so old!"

Basch heard the last few minutes of conversation and cringed; but not from being the topic of choice, the comment, from whom he assumed was Ashe, that he was old. He focused more on what they were saying.

"Are you telling me that you went through your quest and didn't notice those ripped muscles or angelic blond flowing hair?" that must have been Ash.

"I'd been through a lot these past two years!" Ashe protested, "I lost my husband, my father and my kingdom, betrayed by our gods and transported to another world! I think I have a valid excuse to not notice the opposite sex."

"A lame excuse! He's gorgeous, admit it!" Basch was beginning to like this conversation, "I think you're embarrassed to say so!" the knight waited for Ashelia's response, he did not know why he wanted to know what she thought of him. "OH MY GOD! You're blushing, I knew it; you did notice his hot body"

Basch smiled, he knew that nothing could ever come of what he heard, but knowing that Ashe, at the very least, found him attractive, made his night. "He is my knight, I am his princess, it wouldn't work."

"Bullshit!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"You heard, stop feeding me shit and tell me the truth!"

Basch could almost see Ashe's porcelain face flush, "he wouldn't want me," she finally spoke after a long silence.

"You asked him did you?"

Basch hadn't realised it, but he was now listening at the wall, _What do you mean I wouldn't want you?_

"No, but I might as well be a child still, Basch has known women who _know_ things I don't; how can I compete with that?" He didn't like what he heard, yes, Fran had helped him once, when they escaped Nalbina, so he knew everything still worked, and from time to time, he would visit professional lovers to keep his hands off the princess.

"Damnit girl! Is that all your worried about? I could teach you those things if you like?"

Basch swallowed hard.

"Really? How?"

He guessed that Ash just smiled, or whispered something, because the conversation died and he heard the light switch off. He felt like he had a price on his head once again.

* * *

Noah could not sleep very well; he had a strange dream involving Ash, which made him wish he could have a cold shower, but he would have to wait until they let him, he was not allowed to eat until they said so. He noticed that a small blond nurse kept checking on him, he found it amusing that she would check on him every five minutes. "Can I help you?" he asked her when she entered again.

Her face flushed beet red, "Um, just checking to see if you're okay."

"I'm sure that not much has changed in the last five minutes," he watched the girl blush more, she could not be more than sixteen years of age, "or where you checking something other than my health?" The poor girl ran from the room at that comment. He never felt comfortable with young girls lusting after him, it made him feel dirty knowing what those girls were thinking. _Nevertheless, you thought of a girl not much older than the one you sent from the room,_ he thought to himself, _and those thoughst should be illegal._ He cringed, he had not thought about anyone like that for years, not since he was a teen in Landis. He sighed with relief with the acknowledgement that he would never have to put up with those ridiculous women's magazine reporters, pestering him for interviews about his romantic life. Archadian women threw themselves at him at every opportunity, he did not mind that part so much, it was when after just one night they expected a relationship. However, he was not Archadia's most eligible bachelor for five consecutive years for nothing; a title he wore with more pride than the title of Judge Magister, but now he wore neither and he didn't mind in the slightest.

He heard a knocking at the door to see a slender man with brown hair and green eyes looking at him, "May I come in?" he asked politely, "We didn't get a chance to meet properly yesterday."

Noah searched his memory of the previous day, realising it was Ashling's brother he nodded and offered him a seat, "Alex isn't it?"

The man smiled, "Definitely nothing wrong with your brain," he chuckled, "And you're Noah or Gabranth? You were referred to as both so I would like to know which you prefer."

"Gabranth is dead," Noah said remorsefully, "Call me Noah."

"You too have a past?" Alex asked him without surprise, "Seems to be a prerequisite for falling onto our property from Ivalice." The two chuckled dryly; Noah's abdomen throbbed with pain in doing so. "So, what's your story?"

The former Judge stiffened, "I'll give you the strongly edited version: A misunderstanding with my brother lead me to do something unforgivable. After I nearly killed him and vice versa, he forgave me for those horrible things I did to him." He cleared his throat, "you know what happened after that, as your sweet sister rescued me by bringing me here."

Alex smiled, "Yes, I was quite shocked by her actions," his voice emphasising his bewilderment.

"What do you mean?" Noah did not notice anything unusual about her, not that he would know anyway.

Alex's smile fell to a grim grin, "She watched her fiancé pass away in the E.R. one and a half years ago."

Noah was speechless, he had no idea that she had lost someone so close to her, "What happened?" he asked finally, not wanting to say something that might upset her.

"Russell, her Fiancé, was in a motorcycle accident," Alex shifted uncomfortably, "the night they announced their engagement."

Noah knew that pain, having his own long-term girlfriend, back in Landis perished in the invasion, he had asked her father's permission just before the invasion hit. Noah's parents loaded him and his brother into their airship and their mother piloted it her family home in the outer provinces of the Empire, the safest place she knew at the time. That night, he lost his love, his father and his home; the following day he lost Basch, who refused to stay with their Archadian relatives, vanished without a trace until nearly sixteen years later when Vayne sent him to Dalmasca and he saw him as a captain, no less. Vayne … he knew the man was here in the hospital and that Alex was operating on him, "The other man who you operated on, does he live?"

"Yes," Alex smiled, "but the quality of his life to come is hard to know, not until he wakes from the coma."

Noah took comfort in knowing that Vayne could not hurt anyone right now, "Be sure to have someone there to guard him once he does wake," Noah warned him, "He is a dangerous and unpredictable person."

"Chances are he won't remember who he is," Alex explained, "his temporal lobe had taken quite a beating and I removed nearly a dozen small blood clots."

"Still, you cannot be sure," the blond grumbled.

"Are you the one who inflicted such injuries to the man?" Alex asked suddenly.

"Only one of many," he explained, "even the man's own brother fought to prevent him from succeeding in his diabolical plans."

Alex chuckled quietly, "You sound like a comic book hero, _diabolical plans_," Alex gave his quote a dramatically over acted recital. Noah chuckled. "Anyway, Ash is coming to pick me up so maybe she has brought your brother with her so he can visit you.

In actual fact, Alex had sent Ashling a text message, which she had not read, yet, she had spent most of the previous night talking with Ashe, like they were best friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time. Ashelia had awoken first, hearing the S.O.S. beeping of Ash's mobile phone. "Ash?" the princess shook her slumbering doppelganger gently, "That phone of yours is beeping at me!"

Ashling chuckled at hearing that, "press the square button and read the message." Ash sat up, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.

Ashe did as she was told, "it says: get out of bed you lazy bitch & come pick me up, love Alex." The text message was strange for Ashe; her brother was insulting her and wanted something nice in return?

"Hit reply and tell him to do something creative with his request by placing it in an uncomfortable bodily orifice." Ash got out of bed and walked towards the bathroom, dressed in a loose fitting T-Shirt and ill-fitting boxer shorts, she wrestled with her clothing to remain where it was while she walked.

"What do you mean by that?" Ashe did not understand the requested reply.

"Tell him to shove it up his arse, I'll be there when I'm there and not before," Ash turned on the shower.

"You talk to all your brothers that way?" Ashe called to her as she tried to figure out the puzzling electronic device.

"Yep," Ash replied flatly, "Dad too!" Now Ashe was horrified, "But they know I don't mean it, it's all for fun, they know I don't hate them so I wouldn't insult them unless I was joking." Ashelia shook her head, this place was strange. She deciphered the mobile phone and sent the abnormal message to Alex. Ash returned a short time later with a towel wrapped around her body with another for her hair, "You wanna come?" she asked suddenly, "I'll be taking tall, blond and handsome to his brother at the same time," she wiggled an eyebrow at the princess who just blushed. "If you don't answer I take it as a yes …"

Ashelia giggled, "Why should I go?"

Ash gave her an exaggerated sigh, "do I have to spell it out?"

The two laughed, as Ash began to dress in jeans and a t-shirt, nothing flash. She threw some clothes to Ashe who, after her shower, dressed; the two looked nearly identical down to the shoes. "Can you please go wake Basch?" Ashe asked timidly.

"Already done," she pointed towards the window, "he's out on the balcony." Basch was bending over the guardrail, looking out to the horizon. Ashe's eyes had settled on a well toned set of glutes clad in a pair of cargo pants. "Enjoying the view?"

Ashe's face flushed a deep crimson as she tore her gaze away from her knight/protector, "What?" she asked nervously.

"I was talking to Basch," Ash grinned knowingly; Basch had entered the room, but thankfully, looked more interested in the photograph on the chest of draws. The trio left for the hospital without further delay.

* * *

Penelo walked from her room, her hair messed up from a good nights sleep; she was still in her clothes from the previous day and desperately needed a bath. "Hay Fran," she greeted the tall Viera who stood in the kitchen, making herself a coffee.

"Good morning," she smiled, looking through the classifieds of the news paper, "Are you doing anything today?"

Fran's question caught her off guard, "What do you have in mind?"

She beckoned the girl over with a wave of her hand. "I found something in the building over by the wreckage of the Strahl," she explained, "Vossler told me that they're vintage cars, many projects left unfinished by Alex and Ash's eldest brother, Warwick. He is trying to find his hobby, apparently and the cars are a failed hobby." They sat at the breakfast bar, huddled over the newspaper, "those vintage cars are worth a lot of money," Fran continued, pointing to a fancy looking vehicle, "I think I will complete them and sell them for profit."

"What does it have to do with me?" Penelo asked, stealing Fran's coffee.

"I wish for you to help me," she said brightly, "I trust you to buy all that I need on my behalf and I will split the profits with you, fifty-fifty." She waited for Penelo's response.

"Do you know what to do?" the young dancer asked, "I mean their not like air ships or anything, I do not know how they would work without magecite."

That was when Fran produced a list of car models with the names of reference books, "I need you to convince our hostess to drive you into town to purchase these items for me." She handed Penelo the list, "I would like it if you aided me with the restoration of these beautiful machines; anyway, Balthier is utterly useless when it comes to grease."

* * *

Alex huffed, reading the text that Ashe had sent on his sister's behalf, she had not insulted him, as Ash would have. The polite message simply said that they were preparing to leave in a quarter of an hour. Noah was finally allowed to eat something, a bowl of muesli with fat free milk, whole grain toast with Vegemite and a glass of orange juice; something that any self respecting judge would have avoided due to the lack of energy in it. The two men spoke about many things, including the war that had led those of Ivalice to Alex's back paddock. "So the resistance won after all," Alex mused, "Ghis was adamant that the Empire would be victorious against your brother's gang of freedom fighters. Vossler on the other hand was opposed to the man's view."

Noah took a budgeted sip of his juice, "truth of the matter was simple," he explained, "Vayne was behind the entirety of the war, starting when he falsely charged his older brothers with treason and had them executed. Gramis lost the last bond with his first wife and became bitter towards everything."

"What happened to cause you to change sides?"

"The young lord saw through his brother's guise and raised his sword to him," the judge bit into the savoury toast and grumbled, "That and a second pummelling from my brother."

"Let me guess," Ales smirked, "You were the stubborn one who never conceded defeat in a fight or an argument?"

"Something like that," he sighed, "before Gramis died, I made a promise to protect Larsa and shield him from the horrors of life."

"So it was duty?"

Noah looked out the window to the morning sunshine, "I was willing to lay my life down for the protection of that young man; Vayne would have killed him without a second thought."

"And I thought our family squabbles were bad," Alex sent another text to see what was taking Ash so long.

"When will she be here?" he asked trying not to sound too excited about it.

"Their down stares and will be here soon," Alex read aloud, "It appears Larsa is not with them right now, Ash wanted me to meet someone so there wasn't any room in her car."

Noah nodded, although he loved the young lord like his own son, he thought it better that the visits were spaced as the hospital did not exactly make him look strong enough to protect him. "He has been through a lot of recent, perhaps he needs to rest for a few days," he said finally.

"I would be more inclined to think that you are the one who needs the rest," Alex looked up at him, closing his mobile phone, "And don't assume that I am oblivious to that stuff your brother managed to get to you," he gave a knowing smile. "Vossler tried the same thing but even he knew that it only healed the physical wounds."

"How did you know?" Noah did not try hiding the fact that he had been treated with a megalixer, "Basch was quite covert with it."

"You recovered from the surgery a little too quickly," he said flatly, "you will still need to do the physiotherapy and so on."

"Can I do that from my place of residence?"

"From home?" Alex could see what was coming, "sure, Jen knows where we live."

_We_, Noah felt a warmness to that word he did not expect, "Yes, if it is no trouble that is."

Alex laughed, "The house is large enough, but if we need more room, I will build an extension …" A light knock at the door drew both men's attention.

"Made it," Ash said with a cheery disposition as she entered the room with Basch and Ashe. Alex's eyes bulged open upon seeing the princess, nearly identical to his sister in every way. "Hey Noah, how you feelin'?"

Noah's expression mimicked Alex's, it was the first time he had seen Princess Ashelia up close and without the scowl she usually wore. The Princess looked quite relaxed considering she was in the presence of the man who ended her father's life. A moment passed when Ash cleared her throat, prompting the answer to her question; "I'm fine, I just didn't realise how alike the two of you are."

Ashe smiled at the comment, "I could say the same for you and Basch, but we have already established that haven't we?" her comment was playful, taking the Judge by surprise.

Alex chuckled, "Great now I have _two_ sisters to look out for." Ashe's gaze fell on the man who could easily be her lost brother Alesius. Without hesitation, she threw her arms around his neck, overwhelmed with joy; she really could have her family back.

"Yeah," Ash poked her brother's arm, "that means double the shit stirring, Lexie!"

"Don't call me that," he grumbled from Ashe's embrace.

Basch sat with his brother, whose eyes kept shifting between the apparent twins in disbelief, "I don't know why I didn't see it earlier," he finally released the girls from his gaze, turning it towards his brother, "I now see why you fought so hard for her."

The Knight smiled, "If Ashling is anything like Ashelia; we are in for an interesting time."

Noah cocked his head in question, "What do you mean?"

"Since arriving here," Basch explained, "Ashe has been returning to her old self, relaxed and carefree." Basch explained his late night listening to the two girls talking; Noah eagerly listened, a smile creeping across his face as his brother spoke.

"So they think we're gorgeous?" the judge chuckled with a hint of triumph.

"Ashling does, but until just moments ago, Ashe hadn't looked upon your face," Basch noticed that Ashe continued to look over to him and to his brother, as though trying to learn the differences between them. The girls took delight in messing up Alex's already scruffy hair, the neurosurgeon just laughed, not up to fighting them off.

Noah felt more of the stress that had consumed his life for so long ebb away, but the guilt of ending Raminas's life came back with vengeance. "She seemed so conciliatory towards me, even though I killed her father," he said bitterly.

"You also offered yours to save her and the rest of us," Basch assured him; "You were severely injured when you raised your sword to Vayne, knowing full well that the fight would kill you."

"And yet it did not," he sighed, "instead we came to this place," he motioned around him, "Is it possible to be overjoyed and depressed at the same time? To be honourable and dishonourable simultaneously?"

"Yes," Basch said resolutely, "I lived that this past year." He watched his brother twitch with another wave of guilt. "It's alright; I should not have abandoned you and mother …"

"No you shouldn't have," he paused, watching his brother's face, "and I should not have agreed to help Vayne under his father's nose."

The brothers remained silent, not entirely sure what to say to one another. The girls stopped harassing Alex to see why they had gone so quiet. Ashelia had some idea why, both men wore the same expression she had seen many times before on her most loyal of knights, usually late at night when he assumed that everyone was asleep. She excused herself and approached the bed Noah lay in. "Gabranth?" she asked timidly, sitting near his feet on the mattress.

"Please, do not call me that name," he pleaded with her, "That part of my life is dead to me."

"I think not," Ashe rebutted his request, "the expression you wear tells a different story."

Noah was not surprised, he had heard tails of the princess's intelligence, it was one of the reasons she was feared, and yes, in his lowest of moments, the target of his rage. "You have wisdom beyond your years, milady."

"Not really," she shifted awkwardly, "if you're anything like Basch, you feed off your guilt to fuel your honour." She sighed resolutely, "I blame Gramis for my father's death; he ordered it."

"Actually, Gramis wished for you to wed Vayne," Noah informed her, "It was Vayne who wished him dead."

Ashe simply nodded, as though Noah had confirmed her suspicions, "You know Ash?" she called to her twin, "You're right about him."

"Told ya so," Ash leaned against the wall, her foot planted against the plaster so her knee jutted out in front of her, "bet your minds racing huh?" she gave Ashe a knowing smirk. An exchange of looks and glances seemed to be an argument without words, their eyebrows moving and eyes rolling with each new thought until finally Ashe waved her off in regal fashion. "Fine have it your way," Ashling finally said.

"Did they just …" Noah began, looking at his brother.

"Yes, I believe they did," Basch studied the two girls, not returning his brother's look, "How?"

Alex laughed, he had dozed off for a moment and missed what the situation was, "I think we should be leaving, I'm falling asleep here," he stood up and shook Noah's hand, "I'll make sure that you have a room readied for you once you leave this place." Alex took the car keys from his sister and left for the chosen vehicle for the journey home, "the commodore?" he asked as he looked at the keys, "you decided on the commodore?"

"Someone had already taken the Van," Ash chided her brother, "and I'm not to touch your precious Maserati."

He gave an acknowledging shrug, "Fine, come down when you're ready." He slipped out of the room. Ash moved closer, pulling something out of her pocket, "I brought you something to pass the time," she dropped a small box in his lap attached to two leads, "it plays music, it's mostly what I like to listen to so if you don't like it I'll find something else for you." She gave him a friendly smile.

Noah flipped it around in his hands, not sure how to make it work, both Ashe and Basch looked on at the curious device. "How does it work?" he finally asked.

"Here," she put the two lead ends, which were a strange squishy rubber, in his ears and she pressed a button on the front of it. The little devise came to life, Ash pressed a few more buttons and a series of soft sounds began to resonate in the things in his ears, it was joined by passionate sounding percussion form what sounded like tribal drums. He instantly loved what he heard; she seemed to hit a song that reflected his mood perfectly. He sat still, listening to a song that sounded as broken and hopeful as he did, he looked up at Ash, who stood waiting for his reaction to whether he liked it or not, he nodded his approval, she smiled and rose from her seat, "we had best be going," she said loud enough for him to hear her.

Ashe bowed her head to say goodbye and left to wait in the hall. Basch gave him a brotherly slap to his shoulder and he too, left to wait in the hall. "Do you have to go so soon?" Noah asked louder than he normally would have.

"Alex needs sleep," she sat again on the bed next to him, "Anyway; young Larsa wants to see you today remember? Who do you think will have to drive him here? Vossler failed his drivers test and Ghis doesn't like it at all."

"So you will be returning later?" he confirmed her words, "how long will you be?"

"Whoa, calm down, Noah," she mockingly held her hands up defensively, "we've only just met, I'm not _that_ kind of girl." She gave him a cheeky smile before giving his cheek a kiss, "That's to say I'm not opposed to the idea, either," She turned and left him to the assortment of music she gave him.

Alone once more, Noah closed his eyes with the slightest of grins now gracing his face.

* * *

Ghis collected the daily newspaper from the letterbox at the end of the driveway; it had become a daily ritual for him, the need to know what was happening in the world around him without having to submit to that horrible contraption that Miss King seemed addicted to. As he walked back to the house, the white commodore returned with Ash, her brother, Ashe and Basch; he gave them a friendly wave as they drove past.

He unwrapped the paper, skipping forward to his much-loved little indulgence; the comics. No one in the house had any idea that the comic strips were his favourite and he planned to keep it that way. He chuckled at the _Snake Tales_ strip, how that comical reptile made him laugh, it reminded him of Bergen during his more imbecilic times. The long driveway curved to the front of the house, but Ghis continued to the side entrance, the rumpus room entrance; one large sliding glass door with insect screen. The rumpus room was a large open space with a pool table, dart board, classical style bar and three plush sofas made of crimson leather with two matching chairs and an LCD TV; his favourite room.

With his coffee waiting in a thermos mug and a few ANZAC biscuits, he was ready to enjoy his morning. "Judge Magister?" Larsa called, walking into the room in a pair of Pyjamas that were several sizes too big and appeared to belong to a girl; he sat on the couch nearest Ghis and fiddled with the buttons of the shirt.

"You do not have to call me that any more milord," he said caringly, "I have not carried that title since I arrived here."

"Does that mean I will no longer be Emperor?" he asked innocently.

"Unless we find a way back to Ivalice," he flipped the cap back on his mug and took a measured sip, "Now, what troubles you?"

The boy sighed, "I heard about a girl at the hospital, she needs a new kidney." Ghis did not say anything, letting Larsa get everything out before he spoke. "Vayne is a match for donation, but only if he dies."

Ghis nodded, "You are troubled because your brother has done so many bad things in life, but in his death he could finally do some good?"

"No, he lives, albeit in a coma, and I fear the girl will now die," the boy's eyes showed no façade of malice that his brother possessed from a young age.

"If your brother is a match, chances are that you are too," Ghis said to make him feel better; not thinking the young lad would take it much further.

"I hadn't thought of that," he said with enthusiasm, "When we see Gabranth today, I will find out!" he jumped out of his seat and raced to change, leaving the perplexed Ghis with his Sudoku puzzle, biscuits and still hot coffee.

Larsa ran to the room he picked out, throwing his pyjamas on the bed and leaped into the shower. Without wasting a moment, Larsa had washed, dried and dressed and was leaving his room for breakfast.

Penelo had been trying to do her part for the house; once Ash had arrived home, she gave her the list of things that Fran had asked for and began to cook from one of the many cookbooks in the spacious kitchen. She had made cheese omelette for everyone with Vossler's help. Larsa had experienced the young dancer's cooking on their way to Mount Bur Omisace, it was an utterly forgettable meal, at least he wished it was, he spent the night throwing up behind a tree just outside of Golmore; so it was, needless to say, that he was rethinking breakfast.

"Fear not, young master Larsa," Balthier patted the young prince on the back, "our treacherous friend, Vossler helped her around the kitchen and gave her instructions to follow." He held an empty plat with the tell tale signs of the meal that once lay upon the bone china, "Well if Larsa does not want any, may I have his share?"

"Is it really that good?" Larsa asked uncertainly.

"The only down side is that the eggs were bought from the supermarket," Vossler informed them as he whisked a mixture of eggs, milk, salt and pepper, "not from the ladies outside." He pointed to a grey, corrugated iron shed with about a dozen brown hens scratching about the yard.

"Alright, I'll try some," Larsa watched as the yellow mass was lowered onto a plate, "At least I will be going to a hospital later."

"Hay!" Penelo swatted at his fingers with the spatula, "My cooking isn't that bad!"

The boy swallowed hard, as though he waited for his execution, "Sorry," he accepted the plate and looked at it suspiciously, "Thanks." He carried it to the table where a knife and fork waited for his use of them. He stared at the food in front of him, holding his cutlery, poised to begin.

"Larsa!" Penelo yelled at him, "you are going to eat that or you will not be going to see Gabranth later!" Vaan, who had already had three helpings, laughed at his friend's parental demeanour over the young Archadian prince.

Larsa looked at Penelo defiantly, "You have no authority over, Penelo," he began to cut into his breakfast anyway, "You can't stop me."

The young blond chuckled at the shocked look on his face as he realised that the omelette in front of him actually tasted _good_. "Told you so!' Penelo exclaimed as she turned towards the others who were already finished.

Ashe gave her a warm smile, silently praising the girl for a job well done. "What type of eggs are these? I've never tasted anything like them!" the princess said, still eating her first helping with the same grace that she ate all her meals. Ash however did not have the same grace as the princess; she paced with the plate balancing in one hand and a fork in the other, shovelling the food into her mouth.

"Chicken eggs," Penelo answered, watching Ashe's clone eat in a far less dignified way than Vaan did in the most difficult of places to consume. "They're small birds that can't fly." She pointed to where Vossler had to show Larsa. "I think their cute."

Ashe looked at the same brown birds scratching in the dirt, their beady little eyes and red crest on their heads made them look like a deflated cockatrice. She did agree with Penelo to a point, they were cute, but not cute like the cat creature that befriended her the previous day. "Penelo, you would find most creatures cute in their own way."

The blond girl shrugged, knowing that Ashe was right about her, she had tried to talk the gang out of the vorpal hunt, because it was too cute to kill.

"You like animals do you Penelo?" Ash asked as she placed her now empty plate on the table, "Rosamund will be foaling soon, it's her first so if you want to help there …"

"Foaling?" she asked.

"Rosamund is my Waler; she's pregnant right now and will give birth in the next few weeks," Ash sounded quite relaxed at the prospect to new life, Penelo wondered if she had ever encountered it before.

The young woman was about to talk again when Alex entered blurry eyed and yawning, "Can you guys find somewhere else to be?" he asked politely, "You are all too loud."

Ash nodded, "I'll take them to the cinema or something."

"Take them shopping for some new clothes," Vossler suggested, "Their attire does not suit this world's fashion."

"Agreed," Alex said, "you can take what … four at a time?"

"Okay," Ash left the room without another word, retrieving the key for the car; she did not want to go out shopping, it was not her most favourite thing in the world; she would rather go do something fun.

Basch had cleared the area, taking the dishes to the kitchen sink; nobody had noticed his gesture, which he did not mind, the King household gave them shelter and if he did not know any better, a home. He was reminded of his home in Landis, his family were wealthy enough to employ people to do the cooking and cleaning for them, but his mother always insisted that he and Noah learnt to care for themselves. He caught sight of Ash spinning the keys on a French polished table in the hall, she looked distracted by something. He cleared his throat, startling her in the process, "Shit!" she cried, placing her hand on her chest, "I thought you were Alex." She turned around, leaning on the mahogany table, "he'd kill me for that."

"Is something troubling you?" he asked, keeping his distance.

"No offence, but we only met yesterday," her eyes looked sad, "how about you ask me that again in a few months time, huh? You know, like when we get to know each other better?" she walked back to the dining room. Basch walked over to where she had scuffed the table to see a picture of Ash with a tall, broad, dark man with a kind face, holding her waist the way a lover would. He saw another photo of the same man with a name: Russell Milligan. He smiled until he saw the date underneath: 12th May 1983 – 5th December 2004. Basch's heart sank, like his princess; Ash too had suffered the loss of someone she loved. He did not need to ask what had been bothering her, the date on the Calendar was the 11th May 2006, a Thursday. He groaned it was going to get worse for her; she would need a friend to comfort her. He decided to let Ashe know what he had learned, hoping that the similar circumstances would help the girl cope. Upon returning to everyone, she showed no signs of the depression she had moments before.

"So anyway, I was thinking a girl's day out," she sounded cheery and bright, "Sorry Fran, your bunny ears aren't exactly common here; do you want a hat or something?"

Penelo squealed excitedly, "Oh that sounds like fun!"

Fran chuckled, "It will have to be a big hat." Even Basch found the comment funny, considering it came from Fran.

"Cool, I know just the one!" she grabbed Fran's hand, "Come on. I got it last year for the Melbourne Cup" She stopped at the door, turning back to Ashe and threw the keys at her, "Same car as before." She continued from view.

Ashe had caught the keys with one hand; she was impressed with her luck, feeling pretty good about herself. She gave a cocky grin at Basch, who just gave her a confused look, "Let's go Penelo," she said, hooking her arm with the other girls and walked out to the car.

Balthier, Vaan, Larsa and Basch decided to explore the grounds while the girls were out. Vossler had started to do housework, which did make Basch chuckle, considering that in the Order, Captain Azelas always employed someone to clean his quarters to the high standards the knights were held. To watch him now load a contraption with the dirty dishes and begin to clean the benches was a sight that the Landian would not soon forget.

* * *

Larsa stayed at Basch's side as he watched Balthier and Vaan walk up ahead, they had been told not the kill any of the animals on the property, as they were not dangerous like those of Ivalice. As a precaution, Balthier had taken all the weapons they had and placed them in the wreckage of the Strahl to stop any accidents, however, Larsa held onto his stash of high-potions, just in case.

"How big is this place, anyway?" Vaan asked after a while of walking down the track that bisected the property.

"Alex had said that the perimeter of this place is guarded by a high fence with electrified barbed wire at the top, to prevent trespassers," Balthier answered the boy, "With what I can figure out, it is a bit on an over-kill."

"The King family are wealthy, so I believe it is a reasonable action," Basch argued, "To protect ones family is paramount."

"Says the man who on two separate occasions raised a sword to his brother," Balthier teased.

"I believe the only one innocent of any violence towards their family here is Vaan," Larsa corrected the pirate.

"True," Balthier conceded, "who would have thought Vaan innocent of anything?"

The trio laughed, leaving Vaan to do handstands near by, not paying attention to the recent conversation. The slight chill to the air not suiting the desert clothing he wore. The wind from the southwest began to blow harder and clouds began to form on the horizon. Vaan stumbled on a basaltic rock, tearing the fabric of his pants, "Great!" the thief cried, examining the tear.

Balthier roared with laughter, "All those battles we made it through and you circum to a rock!" Vaan shot a dirty glare at the pirate and threw the offending stone at him, "Hay! Watch it there!"

"I've had these for years!" Vaan complained, tugging at them to emphasise his point, "I really like them."

"Then sew them up when we get back to the house," Basch suggested, "I am sure there is a needle and thread somewhere in that house."

"That's a girl's job," The blond protested, kicking a clump of dirt.

"And yet the best tailors I know are men," Balthier dusted his sleeves as he spoke, "Or are you just too stupid to handle something as simple as mending you trouser leg?" the suave gentleman challenged Vaan, his eyes focused on the young man's with an intensity that caused him to look away.

"Fine I'll do it!" he grumbled like an obstinate teen, "How hard could it be?"

They continued down the track, which came to an abrupt end in a large field with what can only be described as a dense forest. They quickly lost sight of each other, but could still hear each other clearly, Larsa liked it immensely, and the exotic aroma the trees gave off tickled his nose; it was fantastic! Basch pulled a leaf from the nearest branch and crumpled it in his hands to better understand the source of the scent; he sniffed the remains of the leaf and jerked his head back, the smell was so strong, his eyes watered from the intensity. "These trees are potent," he informed the group, "it's a strange oil of some kind."

"I'm glad none of us are smokers," Larsa giggled, looking around his surroundings in awe, "What's that?" he pointed up in a tree where a grey, fury creature sat in the branches, chewing on the same leaves Basch had tested. It's large black nose and circular ears made it look comical as it clung to the bough.

Balthier gazed up at the funny looking beast, "I have never seen anything like it before." He contemplated climbing the tree to get a better look at it, when it shuffled and a smaller creature with identical featured came into view.

"Oh it has a baby!" Larsa chuckled in wonder, his eyes wide with amazement.

"We must ask someone what it is," Basch smiled, "I guess this is the reason we have been told not to kill anything."

"There is always something to kill," Balthier mockingly declared, "I refuse to not eat a good piece of meat at the end of the day."

Vaan laughed, startling the Koala, who climbed higher. "That sounds so gay!"

"You wish, Blondie," the pirate retaliated, smirking at the comment, that boy's mind was _always _in the gutter.

The clouds above the canopy darkened, promising rain in the not to distant future. "Perhaps we should return to the house," Basch suggested, looking up at the black clouds, they reminded him of the storm clouds of his youth.

Balthier nodded, "yes, those look like rain clouds."

They went to walk beck the way they came, "Uh, which way did we come from?" Vaan asked, looking around.

"Shit!"

* * *

The girls wandered around the mall, Fran sporting a large, floral hat that would not look out of place at the races, the other girls decided to join in with the big hats, so as not to draw attention to the Viera. They had spent the entire morning, or rather what was left of it, buying clothing that would help Fran, Ashe and Penelo blend in with the locals. The multitude of bags filled with clothing, shoes, toiletries and other bits and pieces that they would need for their new lives. Ash bought some more music and another mp3 player, as she gave hers to Noah to help him pass the time.

Now that most of their vigorous shopping spree was nearly done, they decided on a Chinese lunch from the food court. Fran relaxed into the chair of their chosen table, trying hard to relieve her feet from the confines of the stiletto boots she chose to wear, due to their similarity to her own shoes. Her toes ached something vicious. Penelo sat with her, looking through her bags with excitement, she had never bought so much in her life. "Wow this place is amazing!" she giggled with glee, pulling out a stylish sandal to admire the craftsmanship, "I didn't realise anyone could get so much at once!"

Fran had to admit, Balthier had never pampered her this way; she could easily get use to it. "Just remember that we have new lives here," she flexed her toes again, "this was a necessity."

Ashe and Ash arrived at the table with two trays of steaming hot food that smelled divine, "Well now the fun part is about to begin," she picked up a small package from the tray and slammed the end on the table, exposing two wooden sticks which she used to eat with. "We get to show off our new purchases to the boys back home."

"What are those things?" Penelo asked, pointing to the chopsticks Ash used.

"They're chopsticks," she answered, "don't worry, I wouldn't torture you with making you use them right now, I got you guys a knife and fork each." She gestured to the tray with the white plastic cutlery, "My apologies for the brittleness of them."

Fran could not see the point of the knife, all the food looked bite size anyway; she glanced at Ashe who ritualistically cut each bite size morsel in half before eating it. Penelo, thankfully, did not try to emulate the princess, but ate as she always did, relaxed and chatting between portions. Fran almost added to the light conversation when a group of men approached them. "Hay ladies," the shorter of the three spoke, his brown eyes twinkling mischievously, "nice hats."

"Hay Ayden," Ash replied calmly, tilting her ridiculously large brimmed hat up, cowboy style, "What's up?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he winked; "who are your gorgeous friends?" he gave Penelo a sultry glance at her body.

"The tall goddess over there is Fran," she gestured to Fran casually, "the cute blond there is Penny," she repeated the motion to Penelo, "and this is my sister from Ireland, Ashelia."

"Wow, two babes from the same family," the tall redhead sat next to Ashe, his piercing blue eyes staring directly at the princess, "you know, you're sister use to be a real freak, are you the same?"

"Excuse me?" Ashe asked, her brows coming together in an angry frown.

"Where's your accent?" Ayden asked, his eyes flicking between the two girls.

"Oh for fucks sake!" Ash cried, "She moved there with our mother, who lived in London for a long time! Remember?"

"Okay," he let the matter drop, "So what's with buying the shop?"

Ash jumped in right away, "We wanted a few new things," she gave him a sweet smile of innocents.

"Okay, so you wanna come to me party next week? It's me twenty-first," he puffed his chest out proudly, shaking the mass of chocolate brown hair around. "You can bring your friends if you want."

"Friday?" Ash asked cautiously.

"Yep, eight 'til late, B.Y.O. spirits and there will be snacks too," he gave Penelo a wink.

"Watch it dude, she's jail bait," Ash grinned saying that.

"Just my luck," he sighed, turning to the third member of their little group, another brunette with short hair and hazel eyes and pale skin, he smirked at his friend and turned his gaze back to Ash.

"Well gentleman, we wish to finish our lunch before it goes cold," she flicked a carrot into her mouth before she continued, "just text me the details later, Ayd."

"Yep, cool," he held his phone up in acknowledgement, "see ya."

"By-yee." The girls returned to their lunch.

* * *

The rain roared as Basch, Balthier, Larsa and Vaan dashed for cover, they found the edge of thick forest; the track they had travelled down was far from where they emerged. The track, with its high clay content, stuck to the bottoms of their shoes, increasing their height by nearly an inch and making them slide as they tried to climb the hill.

"Yuck," Larsa complained as he slid backwards, landed on his behind in a muddy puddle, "I will need another shower after this." He flicked the white sludge off his hands and trudged on.

Balthier's odd slipper like shoes kept being left being in the sticky muck, the pirate becoming angry and walking barefoot the remaining distance, carrying his shoes in his left hand, "the weather here is not very nice," he grumbled, the rain continuing to drench the group, "it feels as hard as the wet in Giza."

"We should have stayed in the house," Vaan said depressingly, "at least we would be warm." The chill in the air had gotten worse, a chill they had not expected and it froze them to the bone.

Basch gave an amused huff, not once during all his years with the order, or during their quest had he complained about anything, yet Vaan seemed to make up for all of that. He walked behind Larsa, to ensure the boy did not tumble again and his hand on the fence that ran along the track. The rain beat down on them with renewed vigour, making the ground under their feet all the more slippery. He looked up to the sky, squinting as the water droplets assaulted his eyes; it was showing no sign of letting up just yet.

* * *

Vossler heard the rain get heavier, and the four newcomers had not returned to the house yet, putting down his pencil, he left his room and took the Hilux keys to go pick them up. He swiftly headed to the carport around the back, the Hilux served as the main vehicle to travel the property due to its versatility. It had adequate heating and was dry, which Vossler believed would be the most appreciated detail of the Ute. As fast as his feet could carry him, he sped across to the blue vehicle and positioned himself for the drive down the slippery track; he did not bother with the mud chains, not enough time.

* * *

Balthier, being in front of the others, saw Vossler first, "oh, now he offers help!" Balthier still did not truly trust Vossler, why should he? The bastard tried to slash his devilishly good looks with that club like sword of his _and_ destroyed his silk shirt!

The truck pulled up and the window wound down, "Don't look at me like that, Balthier," Vossler spoke dryly, "Get in before it get's worse."

They did not need telling twice, they climbed into the vehicle, Basch in the front as he was the largest and the back was so cramped. "Thank you, my friend," The knight said, slapping his hand on his comrade's shoulder.

"This place has a habit of changing the weather without notice," he explained as they drove back to the house, "you might want to clean up before the girls return."

An hour later, Larsa sat in the lounge in one of Ash's bathrobes on, and Balthier, Basch and Vaan wearing towels, all waiting for their clothing to dry after having them washed and currently in the tumble dryer, excluding the leather, which was unceremoniously tossed over the back of the dining room chairs. The Television was switched on to keep them entertained, unfortunately for them; it was daytime TV, which defeated the purpose.

"This is so boring," Vaan complained, "who cares about some stupid woman who has a gambling problem!"

Balthier had to agree, these people looked like they wanted to just get their faces seen by strangers, "Is there anything else on?"

Vaan flicked the channels only to find variations on the original program, "no luck."

The boys sat in the slowly warming room, wishing for something else to do.

They did not have to wait for long; the front door opened and the sound of rustling paper and plastic bags could be heard, "We're back!" Ash called, flicking the keys into a glass bowel on a pedestal next to the front door, the girls entered the lounge and their eyes fell on the three half-naked men, "Aw guys, you shouldn't have," Ash teased, catching the princess's apparent look of horror … or was it awe?

Fran pulled the over-sized hat off her head, allowing her ears to stretch and twitch; she tossed the hat at Balthier, which glided like a floral UFO onto the blushing pirate, "Now, now boys, you know better than to show that much skin around me," Fran the men a knowing smile.

"And with that," Larsa stood, "I will take my leave … ladies," he gave a polite bow and left for his room.

"Fran, please," Balthier stood up, placing the hat on the arm of the chair, "Now is not the time for any of that." There was genuine panic in Balthier's eyes.

"Um, we might want to leave them alone for a while," Penelo smirked, trying to usher the other two out.

"What's going on?" Ash asked, trying to make sense of the scene before her.

"Viera have this … um," Ashe tried to explain, "appetite for … ah," Ashe found it embarrassing when Fran's hormones spiked like that, she was worse than the fiends they slaughtered each day. "Um, how should I say this? She craves intimate contact with another."

Ash watched Ashe blush, "Oh, she's a sex addict," the heiress concluded, "I can fix that." She approached the tall exotic creature, "do you have any preferences?"

Fran turned her attention to Ash, who now wore a devious smile on her face, "What do you mean?"

"Do you need someone to scratch your itch?" Ash obviously had a plan, one that had everybody's curiosity piqued. "It's just; I have a few things that could help you in your current … ah … mood."

Fran raised her eyebrow, "Go on."

"Let's just say it won't get tired like they could," she gestured to the men, "god knows we've all been there … anyway, it has a ten year guarantee and a shit load of horse power."

"It will satisfy me?" Fran sounded impressed, "any time I wish?"

Ash nodded as if they were discussing popular weapons magazine, "yeah, you want me to show you how it works?"

Fran nodded, "you can stay and play if you like."

Ash had not reacted like the other girls in the group, she was not repulsed by the thought of another woman being naked, "Yeah, sure."

Balthier's jaw dropped with realisation that one of his dirtiest fantasies were about to play out within his reach, only it was not the princess and he was not invited, well no harm in asking, "Would you ladies require a hand?"

"A hand, huh?" Ash asked, looking him up and down, "what do you plan to do with it?"

"Anything you wish," he walked up to Fran and slapped her behind, "You don't mind me tagging along?"

Fran's soft ruby eyes settled on Balthier's, "Not at all, more the merrier." With that, the trio left the room.

Those remaining just stared at where the others had left from, Penelo looking quite shocked at what she had just witnessed, "Hay, if Ashling is that way does that mean you are two?" she asked the princess, "I mean, you two have a lot in common."

"I think not," Ashe replied a little too harshly.

"You think that's bad?" Vaan chuckled, "You should see what Balthier and I found in her room, yesterday!"

* * *

Just for the record, I think Noah is a walking tragedy so he needs a happy ending.


	4. Chapter 4

Another Chapter for you to read :Þ

* * *

Chapter 3: Fish out of water.

Noah found the music Ash had given him to be very emotional, he would have to ask her about it when they came to visit later. The rain pelted the windows, not that he noticed, the only rhythmic sound he was worried about was the music, which he liked very much. He could not help thinking of her, she had given him the music and that kiss on his cheek with an open promise that stirred his imagination. Yes, it disturbed him that she was identical to the princess, but she was so different, she felt more passionate some how. He sighed, hoping that she would be here soon, with his brother and charge in tow as the hospital was quite a lonely place in a single room. He grown bored with the bed controls, finding every combination possible before he put it back in its holster.

Maybe she would bring him something else to occupy his time when she arrived, a book perhaps, or another piece of this amazing technology they had here, and all without magecite! He found himself studying the small monolithic device many time before giving up on how it worked, again, he would ask Ash how it worked.

"Would you like a cuppa, dear?" A woman asked from the door, she looked to be in her early sixties with a friendly round face and curly greying hair.

"Uh," he pulled the ear buds from him, "Sorry, could you please repeat the question?" he had heard her, only he did not understand what a 'cuppa' was.

"Would you like a cup of tea or coffee?" she asked more slowly and then giggled, "You youngsters with your IPod thingies." She trotted in pushing a trolley with two stainless-steel pots, a smaller jug and a bowl with sugar.

"Um, coffee please," he answered with the respect he had shown his parents, "Thank you."

In a white ceramic mug, she poured the brown liquid, "Milk?"

"Please."

"Sugar?"

"Two."

She stirred the coffee and handed him his beverage, "Who ever she is, I hope she realises she has a gentleman." Noah looked up at her, confused, "I see that faint smile you have, I may be old, but I am not blind, young man."

He blushed, "You are quite observant, ma'am," he sipped his coffee, "Thank you."

* * *

Ash closed the door behind her, after showing Fran her wonderful contraption and explaining to Balthier how to use it, she left them and returned to the lounge room. Everybody seemed to have left. She turned, walking up the stairs to Basch's room, she knocked, "You had better get dresses; your brother is expecting you!" she called through the door.

As she was about to walk away, the door opened, Basch stood there still in his towel, "I would, but I have no clean clothing."

Ash giggled, "We'll grab something from Vossy again; then we'll buy you some clothes after the visit to your brother." Basch looked nervous, gripping the towel closer to his body, "You alright?"

"I'm fine," he shifted from side to side, the silence becoming more awkward by the second. Finally, he broke it, "I thought you would be spending with Fran and Balthier."

She turned away, "I … changed my mind, and," her eyes dancing around the hallway, "for some stupid reason, love at a thousand RPM wasn't as appealing as it sounds." He stared at her blankly, "Never mind, Vossler's three doors down." She continued down the hall towards Larsa's room. The boy was fortunate that spare clothing from Ash's nephew was at hand; he had found the clothing waiting for him on his bed, no doubt from Alex.

Larsa greeted by Ash at his bedroom door, "So we can still see Gabranth?"

"You know, he wants to be called Noah now," she informed him, "anyway, you ready to go?"

He nodded and ran to the living room. Ash returned to the lounge room to rummage through the bags to retrieve a few things and packed them into the car, Larsa followed her out and sat in the car, "When do we leave?" he asked politely.

"As soon as Basch gets here and we're off."

* * *

Basch knocked on Vossler's door, still holding his towel with an iron grip. Vossler answered the door, "I was wondering when you would remember we were the same size," he smiled. "Come, I have already pulled out something suitable."

"Thank you," Basch walked towards his friend's bed, sitting down on the corner. He picked up the black, cotton t-shirt and slipped it over his head, followed by a pair of blue jeans.

"Ah," Vossler screwed his nose up, "you can keep those."

"Thank you," Basch missed the displeasure on Vossler's face.

"I hope you remember to pick up underwear when you're out," the disgruntled knight sighed as he turned towards his desk.

"Oh, right," he looked down at his lap, "Sorry."

Vossler laughed, "Will Ashelia be going with you?"

"No, she had a head ache," Basch replied casually, "She's gone to lay down." He pulled a pair of socks on then headed for the door.

"Wait, you will need a jacket," Vossler threw a black, silk lined, leather jacket, "it's cold out there."

* * *

Ash waited at the door, holding another of those music devices that everyone of her age group had. She saw Basch race down the stairs and make a b-line for the patio, where his boots were drying. Slipping them on, he sighed, feeling the tell tale chill of cold, damp leather boots. He walked back to the door where Ash waited, "Ready."

"Cool," she turned, "Hop in." She sat in the driver's seat and plugged the device into the car stereo. The music erupted around the car as she began to drive off. She began singing to the song that played.

Basch was taken aback, she had told him she could not sing at all, but her voice was perfect, matching both the pitch and timbre. Larsa watched her with his eyes wide, he liked the song, and it was very different to the music he grew up with in Archadia, this sounded _Happy_. "What is this?" Larsa finally asked after the fifth song.

"You mean 'who' is this," she corrected, "its Queen, this is my brother's IPod; so we get his music." She gradually returned to singing along with the song.

Basch and Larsa remained silent as the listened to her and were disappointed when the pulled into the car park.

* * *

Penelo danced around her room with her new clothes, they were unlike the clothing available to her in Ivalice; these were, well, practical. She no longer had to undress to duck behind a bush; she did not have to duck behind bushes any more either, the convenience of indoor plumbing made her feel like royalty.

"Whatchya doin'?" Vaan asked, opening the door.

"Come have a look at what I Got!" she cried, not looking at him as she tipped the contents of her shopping bags on the bed, "I have new everything! Even stuff that I don't know what it is!" she looked up to see her friend wearing a towel still, "Clothes still wet?"

"Yeah, and I don't have any spare," he sat down, sifting through her new belongings, "Hey what's this?"

Penelo shrugged, "Beats me, but Ash, ah the new one, told me that it's suppose to be underwear."

Vaan looked over the small triangular piece of material, "No way, this would cover nothing! Why bother wearing something if it does nothing?"

"New world, new customs I guess," She giggled, picking up another item that confused her, "This is supposed to clean your teeth." The Electric toothbrush remained trapped in the impenetrable casing that Penelo tried to break through earlier, "I can't see how we can use it, if you can't get it out from its packaging."

"Will I need to get one?" He asked, looking through more of the many items on the bed.

"Yeah, Ash said that we should brush our teeth twice a day!" Penelo threw the toothbrush back on the bed, "I don't think I've done it since that time we stayed in Archades, you know, at that hotel where Balthier ripped off those Seeqs in the card game."

"Oh yeah, and we had to leave before they awoke and realised we had all their gil," Vaan laughed hard, "I never ran so fast in my life!"

Penelo began to sort her new clothing and fold it up, "I'm gonna miss those days," she murmured quietly, "No more fighting the Empire, going on hunts or Magicks, it's all gone now, what do we do here?"

"I know what you mean," Vaan sighed, "you know Pirates here are nasty! Killing people and demanding huge ransoms for boats they capture."

"That's awful!" she shrieked, "We can't be Sky-Pirates now, not if they are like that!"

"No, they are not what we want to be," Vaan lay back, "so what do we do now?"

"I could dance!" She smiled, "Ash dances you know."

"And what do I do?" He asked, folding his hands on his stomach, "I don't know anything other than stealing, and that's really hard here."

"Not to mention that it's illegal," she giggled, "I bet Balthier's having the same crisis." She began to place her clothing into the draws, "Anyway, poor Fran has to wear a ridiculously large hat to go out of the house."

"I know, because Viera don't exist here," he sat up again, "hey you want something to eat? I found some left over pizza in the kitchen."

"Okay," She closed the draw, "race ya!" she sprinted past Vaan, taking his towel with her.

"Hey!"

* * *

Noah heard Larsa running towards his room and braced himself for the attack that would hen would endure soon. "Gabranth!" he called, skidding as he turned the corner, "You'll never guess!"

The boy collided with him, giving the judge a bear hug that knocked the wind out of him, "you're right, I'll never guess," he coughed, "So what has my tiny Lord so excited?"

"There is a girl here in the hospital and she is a genetic match for Vayne, what ever that means," he spilled out, rapidly, "anyway, Vayne survived and now she can't have his kidney, so I've decided to see if she can have one of mine!"

Noah tried to let the information his young charge had spurted out absorb when Basch and Ash entered the room, "Don't think they'll let you, kid," Ash said as she sat in the chair next to the bed, "they prefer adults for organ donation."

"Oh," the young emperor's mood darkened with the news he that could not help, "Will the girl be alright?"

"She's being looked after by the best doctors in the area," Ash informed him, "they'll find another donor." She gave the boy a reassuring smile, one which he reluctantly returned.

She turned her gaze to Basch, who simply laughed. Noah felt a jolt of something he did not like, _Why is she looking at him?_ He growled inwardly, but he noticed that she had, in turn, settled her eyes on his without him knowing. She had a smile on her face, a beautiful, flawless smile that imbedded itself in his mind. "What has you so happy this evening?" he asked finally.

"I have some presents for you," she picked up a bag he did not know she had and tossed it towards him, "Just a few essentials, couldn't have you stuck in that hospital gown during your entire stay."

Noah caught the bag and emptied the contents in front of him, she was right, only essentials, nightwear, toothbrush and paste, a bar of soap with a cloth and a book written by someone called Oscar Wilde. "Thank you," he said picking up the pyjamas, they were clearly too big for him, but she was correct, the small white cloth that he had to suffer with did nothing to protect his privacy when vanishing to the restroom. "I think these are a little big."

"Sorry," She blushed, "I guess I remembered you being bigger."

He could not help smiling at this, "I should change," he tore the tags off the black satin nightwear and pulled the horrid white cloth over his head. Basch chuckled as Ash averted her eyes, this caught Noah's attention, and Ash's obvious attempt to avoid looking at a half-naked Noah made him laugh. At he buttoned the shirt up; his gaze remained on her as she peeked at his chest, this gave him an unexpected feeling, one of joy. "I am sure I am not too alien for you, Ash," he smiled, "I do, however, hope that my pale body is to your liking."

She boldly turned back, "As we are _White Caucasians_, my dear Noah, it is preferable to remain as white as possible as tanning ages us rapidly, not to mention the occurrence of that nasty thing known as skin cancer and I would like to appreciate the fine example of masculinity before me for some time," she quipped rapidly. Basch laughed again, the girl was intelligent and had dumbfounded his brother, who prided himself on his witty remarks.

The Judge had paused; he was impressed with her intelligence, even though he did not understand exactly what she meant. His mind raced to find an equally cleaver response, but her smug grin pulverised every thought in his head.

Ash watched as Noah blushed at her words, "Did I say something to embarrass you?" she asked mischievously.

"Quite the opposite," he almost whispered, now watching her face flush a faint pink.

She averted her eyes again, "You should finish changing," she said calmly, "or it could get embarrassing for you."

* * *

Penelo ran into the kitchen, giggling and waving Vaan's towel like a victory flag. "Give it back!" Vaan called, covering his groin with one hand while trying to snatch the towel back with the other.

"Nah-ah," the mischievous young blond dancer laughed, "not until I want to!"

"Penelo!" Vaan whined, his face contorting in perceived agony.

"Penelo, give him his towel back," Vossler said as he cut up pieces of chicken at the bench, "seeing Vaan naked was never on my list of things to do today, or ever for that matter."

"Huh! Even Vossler's on my side!" Vaan cheered, taking his towel back and wrapping it around his waist again, "I heard there was pizza left?"

Vossler pointed to the refrigerator, "There's two whole pizzas left; help yourselves."

Penelo grabbed the boxes and moved to the dining room with Vaan following closely behind. Vossler shook his head, focusing on the evening meal once more, he was grateful that with the others now here, he would not have to cook so often and with it being an egalitarian household, even the Princess would have to do her part.

"Son-of-a …" Vossler cursed, the 'stay-sharp' knife slicing his finger, "Damnit!" he pinched the cut closed and moved to the sink to clean his wound. In all his time as a knight, not once had he reacted to injuries, why was it an axe wound in the back did not hurt as much as a small nick from his favourite knife?

Pulling a plastic bandage from the draw, where the first-aid kit was kept, he dressed the wound and cleaned up the small amount of blood that hit the cutting board and the knife, he continued his task, shaking his head at the inane giggles from Penelo in the next room and the frustrated cries from Vaan.

* * *

Ashe laid back on the bed, her fake headache now becoming real in the solitude of the deafeningly quiet room. She had heard Ashling talking to Basch and wished it were she talking to him while he was wearing just a towel. She sighed deeply, _I should have gone with them_, she thought idly, her fingers twirling her hair.

She was pulled from her wandering thoughts by a light knocking at the door, "Come in," she answered, not really caring who it was.

"Good Evening Princess," a suave, Archadian voice greeted her.

"I though you were entertaining Fran this evening?" she asked cheekily.

The Pirate huffed, "The _Device_ she is using can make one feel redundant," he grumbled, sitting on the edge of the bed, "Is your head ache genuine?"

"No," she admitted, "I just wanted some time to think."

"About what?"

"I do not know," she sighed, "Maybe I'm still coming to terms with this new life."

Balthier smiled, "indeed, if I knew we would end up here, I would never have tried to break into the Palace treasury."

Ashe laughed, her shoulders jiggling, "but we had fun," she added finally, "And this place is not too bad, though I'm still getting use to being friendly with Ghis."

"When I was at the Akademy," the pirate chuckled, "Ghis was considered the 'fun' Magister, before all the nethicite nonsense, anyway."

"You liked him then? As a mentor, that is."

"He hated me," Balthier chuckled, "I was always getting into trouble by him for going to the girls dorms … like his daughter's."

Ashe roared with laughter, "His daughter!" she screamed, "By the Gods! Balthier you're a cad!"

"I was just glad she took after her mother," he shrugged; looking down at the girl next to him, the tight white t-shirt she wore did nothing to quell his lustful thoughts. He had been a good boy, not making any advances on the princess during their travels through Ivalice, but it did not stop him wanting to. He watched the hypnotic rhythm of her chest as she breathed slowly, how he wanted to bury his face in between those plump, round …

"Balthier?" she broke his train of thought, "are you alright?"

He blinked, preying that his body did not betray him, "Perfectly fine, just … zoning out for a moment, I'm a little worried about Vossler's cooking abilities as it is his turn according to Alex."

Ashe laughed, she knew he was looking at her in _that_ way again, she would have said something but his excuses where always entertaining to her, he knew very well that Vossler was good cook, their days in the Sandsea was testament to that. Granted it was not fantastic, but if this world could make cooking less painful for Penelo, than dinner tonight should be quite nice. "He even acts like my brother Alesius," she said, convincing him that she believed his diversion. "You know, Alex?"

Balthier sighed with relief, "I wonder what the others are like," he smiled, putting an arm around her shoulders, "I hope I don't meet any doubles of my family, my eldest brother is now my sister and is a real bitch."

Ashe continued to giggle, "maybe they will be different here … like your double being the girl this time!"

He picked up a pillow and hit her with it, "Princess or not, you deserve a spanking young lady!" he mocked as he pulled her across his lap.

"Go on," Ashe challenged him, "Do it you coward!"

Her crooked grin unnerved him, though the curve of the royal bottom was too tempting to ignore, "I'm sorry Ashe," he said finally, sliding from underneath her, "If I start I won't be able to stop."

Ashe saddened, "Alright," she sighed, sitting at his side, "I guess you still fear what Basch could do."

"And Vossler and your _new_ sister, but most of all I fear what you and I could do," he looked down at her, "Anyway, I would hate to ruin this friendship we have."

"Are you not afraid of what Fran would do to you?" she shot him a devilish grin.

"Only if I don't invite her to join in," he said, returning his own grin.

* * *

Larsa took the opportunity that presented itself, Noah, Basch and Ashling were distracted enough for him to slip out of the room to find the girl who needed the kidney. He wandered aimlessly until he found where mostly children stayed, there were about fifty children that he saw, some of them bald with little to no body fat, others were in cast of plaster, and finally a room where only one child lay in bed, looking pale and with a woman who looked like her mother sitting next to her, sleeping. "Excuse me," Larsa introduced himself with all the politeness that he could muster, "I am the brother of the man who could have donated the kidney to you."

The little girl looked to be around eight years old; her light brown hair had just been brushed and pulled back into a ponytail and her washed out blue eyes struggled to focus on him. "Hello," she mumbled, quietly, sitting up, "I'm Katie."

"Hello, Katie," he walked in, trying not to wake the girl's mother, "I'm Larsa, pleased to meet you." He gave a brief bow.

"I just got back from Dialysis," she said suddenly, "I'll have to keep doing that until somebody dies so I can have their kidney."

The boy's dark blue gaze settled on the equipment by her side, just like the equipment that Noah had strapped to him, "does it hurt?"

"A little," she nonchalantly answered, "it makes me feel sick sometimes."

"How long have you been doing it for?" he could not stop his friendly interrogation, he had to know what Katie had gone through.

"I don't know," she shrugged, "as long as I can remember."

Larsa thought for a moment, he could do for her what Basch had done for Gabranth; give her a potion to heal her kidneys. "Um Katie," he began, "If I told you that I could give you a magic potion to heal you, would you keep it a secret?"

The girl's eyes widened, "You know magic?" she asked in a low whisper.

He nodded, putting his hand in his pocked, "this," he revealed a tiny blue rectangular bottle, "will make you better again and you won't have to have an operation."

"Wow," she began to reach for it.

"But you must promise not to tell any one," he reiterated.

"Not even my mummy?"

"Especially you mummy," he waited for her answer.

"Okay," she nodded, "I promise, cross my heart, I will keep this a secret, even from my mummy." Larsa handed her the bottle, once he uncorked it. She sniffed the contents and giggled, "Smells funny." She lifted it to her lips and downed the whole thing. "Thank you," she handed the bottle back to Larsa.

"It should take a little time," he pocketed the bottle once more, "but you will be better than before and it will look like you are just healing."

"Thank you Larsa," she said, tears in her eyes, "I hope it doesn't hurt."

"It won't," he reassured her, "it will feel itchy or tingly from time to time." He looked around a bit, "I have to go, those who brought me here are probably wondering where I am."

The girl nodded and watched him walk out, "Thank you for saving my life."

* * *

All three occupants of the room watched Larsa try to sneak back in, not one of them berated him for leaving and with silent understanding; they let him return to his seat. Basch rested his hand on the boy's shoulder; the other two chuckled at his bright red face.

"So," Ash chirped like nothing had occurred, "Feel better with clean teeth?"

Noah could have laughed at her absurd change of subject, "Yes, thank you for the … toiletries." He turned and picked up the Oscar Wilde book, "Is this any good?"

Ashling snorted with laughter, "Gee I don't know," she giggled, "do you consider yourself to be intelligent?"

He straightened in his bed, "I headed the Ninth Bureau, that's intelligence," he boasted, "covert operations, espionage, etc."

"So that's a no then," she quipped, sending him a cheeky grin, "Maybe I should have brought Becky's little book of Miffy."

There was a tense moment, Larsa and Basch watched on the edge of their seats, nobody insulted Judge Magister Gabranth. "Miffy?" he asked incredulously, guessing it was a children's story.

Ash chuckled, "I'm just messin' with ya!" she slapped him on the shoulder, "and for the record I never took you as an idiot. Yes, Oscar Wilde is a fantastic read for those with a brain and I didn't take you as someone who would read Jane Austin." She regarded him for, his defensive stature clearly visible; even in his weakened state, "Maybe I should have brought in some Tom Clancy," she shrugged with her grin remaining frozen on her face.

Noah relaxed again, she had toyed with him and he fell for it, the crude jibe had affected him; he could not believe it. "Perhaps books about the world we reside in," he finally said, ignoring the look of amusement on Larsa's face. "I understand very little about this place."

Her features stiffened, "I know you're world was gripped in what can be described as a world war, but do you ever see periods of peace?"

"Yes," Basch cut in, "As there usually is when a war ends."

"Not here, the violence keeps going," she slumped back in her chair, "in one form or another, wars of all kinds are always raging, I have never seen true peace in my life; nobody has."

Larsa shuddered, "never?" he had a disbelief in his eyes that was hard to miss.

"Nope," she shifted again, "several of my friends are in Iraq and Afghanistan, soldiers with the army," she gave a short bemused laugh, "one of Justin's friends was in East Timor when the country gained independence."

"Justin?" Basch asked curiously.

"Yes, the Computer Whiz Kid as dad calls him," Ash picked at something between her teeth, "he got into a lot of trouble for hacking a few government websites a year or so ago and didn't cover his tracks as good as he usually did, he's in Barwon Prison right now, but only for a few more months."

"I have no idea what you are talking about," Noah resigned, "What do the Computers do here?"

"Just about everything," she shrugged, "they kept you alive when you were being operated on, regulate the traffic lights, open the doors we walked through when we arrived here, let's me shop from home without me being recognised; I can show you how to use them if you like, once you get out of here that is."

"Okay," Noah's mind raced at the possibility of spending more time with his angel.

"I warn you though," she added, "I am a really crappy teacher."

* * *

Vossler grunted as he kneaded the dough of the bread he was making, Naan bread to accompany the curry he worked on, it bubbled away on the stove in a large pot; he mused at how many chickens gave their lives to feed the dozen who would be dining that night.

"I do hope you will make it a little stronger this time," Ghis teased, flopping the newspaper on the counter, "or do you have a delicate constitution," the Judge laughed, "And here I believed Dalmascans loved their spicy food."

The knight flicked the paper away from him, "do you mind getting the nigella seeds for me?" Vossler pointed to the cupboard with a tilt of his head, "And I have added the extra chilli, but if you cannot handle it, there is a slab of V.B. in the refrigerator."

Ghis complied, tossing the plastic pouch of black seeds to him, "need anything else?" he leaned against the wall, hanging his hand off the top of the door.

"No, its fine," he emptied the seeds onto the pliant dough and folded it in. "So, how's your Irish lass?"

Ghis stiffened; "spying on me again?" he shot the man a glare.

"You have been chatting to her quite a bit," Vossler commented, "Maybe you should fly over there with Ash when she visits her mother."

"I do not think that Ashling would be happy with me intruding on her visit to see her mother," the judge stated dryly, "besides, now the house's population has grown considerably, I should stay to help out; we don't need another incident that nearly had you arrested."

Vossler glowered, Ghis had dragged out his little indiscretion in town with the mugger; Vossler had taken his sword with him when going into town for a few items of shopping. Ash did not care that a large, broadsword was attached to his back, to this day, he was not sure if she had known it was there. Ash had dived into a health food store for a few organic spices when a young man wielding a knife stepped in front of the Dalmascan knight, holding the weapon towards his throat demanding money. Vossler did what was natural, drawing his sword and readied for a fight. The young man shrieked, loosing control of his bladder before he stumbled back, begging Vossler not to hurt him. Vossler was disgusted and was about to help the thief to his feet when Ash exited the store and berated the young man as though he were a stray dog before turning her anger towards Vossler. "You're right," he eventually answered Ghis, "We do not need Basch making the same mistake or worse."

"Gabranth is also likely to take the same course," Ghis added, "I can give the esteemed Magister guidance with dealing with lawbreakers."

Vossler chuckled, "perhaps we should send them off to the police academy, save us the hassle of teaching them anything."

Ghis laughed, washing his hands to help with the moulding of the bread, "let's hope they can pass their driving test then."

* * *

Nancy checked Vayne's vitals, his breathing had not changed, nor his heart rate or blood pressure, was he stable … but no signs of recovery just yet. He had been out of surgery for six hours, blood loss from surgery had meant he needed two complete transfusions, but he would recover eventually, he was already off the life support system, meaning his lungs were strong enough for him to breathe on his own. Nancy pitied the young man, he had lost his mane of shining black hair and will have several big scars on his body and a few on his head, one on his face, marring his handsome features, but he would live.

She left the room, leaving Vayne by himself. "_You are trapped, Vayne,_" a ghostly voice whispered to the comatose man, "_I will free you, as my last gift to you._" Venat appeared as a disembodied mist, materialising above Vayne. Venat floated there for a moment prior to being inhaled by Vayne, his body tensing and giving a faint shudder before going limp again, returning to the rhythmic breathing as before.

Vayne's consciousness hovered above his seemingly lifeless body below, no words formed as he had no voice, but the feeling of loss overtook his essence. He could not remain in the room with his body; he had to leave, but where to go? He saw a woman with a trolley loaded with food; he followed her as she distributed the contents to various patients and returned to the kitchens and repeated the process, ascending in the elevator to more patients on the higher floors. Eventually Vayne saw a familiar face, cropped blond hair and steel grey eyes with an uncharacteristically content smile on his lips … Gabranth, the man who tipped the balance of his big plans for Ivalice, causing them to come crashing down and leaving him little more than an object taking up space in a bed.

He drifted closer, seeing the traitor was reading a book and laughing at it, how could he be laughing when he would soon die a traitor's death at the hands of his peers at the magistrate. It was then Vayne noticed that his surroundings were not like anything in Ivalice. _What is this place?_

His investigation of the world outside Gabranth's window was cut short with another chuckle from the man, why is he so happy? Vayne drifted closer, looking at the words in the book, yes he could see why the traitor laughed, and this most definitely _not_ being Ivalice, he was safe from punishment for his crimes. Vayne felt anger permeate his existence, _no! He cannot evade punishment for what he done!_ Vayne tried to hit the Judge in anger, but he had no fist to hit with, instead his form drifted close to Gabranth and away again, not so much as an acknowledgement of his effort. Frustration; helplessness; Vayne was defeated … again.

It was then he had the idea of getting inside Gabranth's head, send him mad for what he had done. Like Venat, he glided to Gabranth's nose and entered his head.

"_Hello Gabranth,_" Vayne taunted, musing at the feeling of shock and fear that enveloped his malicious spirit. Gabranth's emotions.

"Who's there?" Noah asked in a whisper, closing the book.

"_Do you not recognise me, my treacherous hound?_" satisfaction rolled through Vayne as the fear intensified, "_you have been a very naughty boy, Gabranth._"

Noah's heart raced, "how is this possible?" he asked Vayne, not sure if he wanted to know the answer.

"_You betrayed me, Gabranth. You raised your sword against me, against Archadia; you should die for what you done!_"

"I did as your father ordered me, to protect Lord Larsa, to shield him from you."

"_You are a coward, Gabranth. You knew I killed Gramis, yet you held your tongue when Drace moved to arrest me, she, who had more balls than all the male Magisters in the room, and you killed her for it._"

"You ordered me to execute her, you cannot pin her death on me."

"_You feel guilty that it was your hand that ended her life for a crime she did not commit._"

"You wanted me in pain, you knew I loved her. The execution was not of her but of me, you drove me mad with grief, so I would recklessly ignore your orders and, hopefully, end my own life." Noah could feel his head begin to ache and a tear roll from his eye, maybe he was going mad, Vayne is in a coma, how could he be in the room with him at that moment.

"_I'm not in your room; I'm in your head. Venat was quite generous with her last gift, freeing me from my corporeal prison, you will return me once my body has healed and we will take this place._"

Noah laughed then, "try it, earth is much bigger than Ivalice and with more dastardly leaders out there with their own plans for this planet, you're small time in comparison."

It was Vayne's turn to feel something again, frustration had returned, this was not going as he had planned, he shut himself off from Gabranth's consciousness, leaving his head silent again.

The judge sighed, picking up his book again and continued onto chapter two of _The Portrait of Dorian Grey_.

* * *

Basch did not like shopping, he decided that when the shop assistant gave him a bemused look. Ash had to get clothing for him, Larsa too, but to a lesser extent, but the boy found the entertainment area of the department store, namely the demonstrations of the game consols and parked himself in front of a Playstation 2 that had a racing game loaded.

Ash showed no shame when holding up different styles of underwear for Basch to choose from, "we need to find out what size you are anyway," she sighed when Basch ducked behind a rack of t-shirts, "I thought you were a brave warrior?"

"This is not battle," Basch mumbled, looking at a couple of men choosing a pair of jeans. "Can you not guess like what you did for Noah?"

"I over estimated, remember?"

"Ah, but you could take that into account and make a new estimation, which should be more accurate than the first," he argued, the men were looking at him now. One gave him a shy wave and a wink; Basch did not know what that meant, but he waved back politely and decided that maybe Ash was only trying to help him.

"What do you think of these?" she held up the last style available, a multi pack of seven y-fronts of various colours, "if you say no to these as well, I'm going to come over there and shove them so far up your arse you'll choke on them."

Her expression was serious and Basch did not want to cause a scene. "They're fine," he agreed, not really caring what design they were.

Ash smiled, "now come over here and let me see what side jeans your wearing so I can get the right size." He walked over, letting her hands fumble behind him as she searched for the label, "Nice arse by the way." She could see his skin blush from her comment, so she decided to take it a step further, "Now I know what held Ashelia's attention this morning."

"What?" he turned quickly, nearly taking her hand with him.

"Hmm, size ninety-two," she smiled, "that makes life a lot easier, doesn't it?" she tossed the underwear into the trolley and moved to the socks, "you won't make a drama of this too, will you?" she teased, picking up several pairs of navy blue woollen socks.

"I have never felt comfortable about purchasing clothing for myself," Basch confessed with humility.

"I always like buying for others," Ash responded, moving them to yet another area of the clothing department, "I probably should do this for myself soon, my outfits are so out of date."

"Perhaps you could take Noah?"

Ash blushed, "oh?"

"I remember you saying that if he flirted with you, you would not return," he began, "however, from what I have seen, you have not only accepted his flirtations but returned them."

"I hadn't noticed," she lied, busying herself with finding a jacket for him.

"Liar," Basch smiled, "you're as smitten, as he is."

"I admit he is attractive," Ash said offhandedly, "as you are, and I always appreciate a well kept body," she looked over his form again, "I will have to get you into the gym; it's a crime for you to be so thin."

"Is that why you insisted on feeding me so much?"

"Yes."

Basch laughed, "You know it is my brother's fault that I am the way I am."

"That is between the two of you," she waved off his comment, "none of my business."

He shrugged, picking up t-shirts that caught his eye. "Are we almost done?"

"Yeah," she placed a few more pairs of jeans in their trolley. "I better get his lordship, before he gets angry and breaks the damn thing."

* * *

Ashe and Balthier sat at the table as Vossler served the evening meal, as did Penelo, Vaan, Ghis, Alex and a very relaxed Fran. Ghis eagerly tucked into his meal before everyone else, but as the curry hit his tongue his face burned red.

"Is something the matter Judge Magister?" Balthier asked, cocking his eyebrow at his former superior.

The older man's eyes bulged and could not reply.

"Oh dear," Vossler frowned mockingly, "did I make it too hot?" this elicited a glare from Ghis, "I added the amount of chilli you asked for, was it too much?"

Vaan took a hesitant morsel and smiled, "just like what your mum use to make, Penelo!" he dug into the dish, not bothering with manners or etiquette.

Penelo agreed, "Vossler, this is brilliant," she said, dipping the bread into the sauce.

A can of V.B. slammed down in front of Ghis, he opened it and skulled the contents quickly, he looked up to thank who had been so kind to offer him the means to douse the fire in his throat, it was Ash with an amused smirk on her face. "Vossy got it right this time, huh?" she leaned down on Ghis's shoulder, "I'm glad you remembered the nigella seed this time," she looked at the Dalmascan knight, who simply smiled in response.

"I do hope you remembered us," Basch added, opening a can for himself and sat at the table, he was dressed in a set of his new clothes, Black jeans, tight white t-shirt and black boots. Vossler did not wait as he begun to serve Larsa first, leaving Ash until last, as she had retrieved the rest of the slab.

"Before you ask," Ash turned towards Larsa, "you're too young so I got you a chocolate milk instead." She slid the 600ml carton in his direction, "If Ghis is any indication; you will need it."

* * *

Vayne was disappointed when Noah put the book down, it was the first truly interesting thing he had done since squatting in his former Judge's mind. He found that he could enjoy the same things that Noah did, like the taste of food, reading or even a daydream, Vayne had no control over any of these things but he was content for now.

Noah felt his eyes growing heavy, the long day had drained him, and the hour with the physiotherapist had been more painful than he had anticipated. He knew that the megalixer would have healed him by now, but Alex was right, the lingering pain from his injuries and the fact that he had hardly moved from his bed he had, in essence, crippled himself. His back, neck, shoulders, arms, legs and chest hurt, a sensation that Vayne too had felt, only he didn't grumble to himself.

Vayne sighed as he watched the last of Noah's blinks before finally closing for good. _Great_, he huffed, _I, who no longer feel fatigue, must suffer hours of black!_ He would have crossed his arms and sulked if he could, instead he imagined pacing in his office back in the palace in Archadia. This quickly became boring and he tried to occupy his time with something else. _I should have paid more attention to my philosophy classes when I was young!_

As though Noah had heard him, his R.E.M. began, bringing forth a world from his imagination. Vayne recognised the place he now found himself in, it was Gabranth's Palace quarters. The small, two-bedroom apartment was unusually clean in comparison to when Vayne had last seen it, though that was after Gabranth had a couple of women he had entertained the night before; clothes were strewn all over the flat that morning and smelled of sweat and sex. The dream had none of that; it was evening with the small table set for two with a candle in a silver holder. Vayne heard Noah singing from, what he presumed to be, the bathroom; only it was the song he had been hearing all day in Noah's head and Vayne was sick of hearing it.

The deposed Emperor slumped onto the couch, placing his feet on the small wooden coffee table. He almost laughed when he watched Noah leave the bathroom, wearing a towel and nothing more, he watched him move to the master bedroom and start dressing without closing the door. "Close the door!" Vayne called out, averting his eyes from the spectacle before him. He waited until he heard the click of the latch, but it did not come; he looked up (Thankfully, Noah was no longer naked.) and wondered if the stupid Judge had heard him. "Judge Magister!" he called louder; still nothing.

"… _I'm on the hunt. I'm after you_," Noah sang, leaving his room dressed in the latest of grenty fashion. Vayne curled his nose; the smell of something coming from the kitchenette tickled his olfactory system. He knew that Gabranth still held a love affair with the food of his homeland, but did the man have to dream about it as well? Noah dashed into the kitchen, opening the oven to what appeared to be a stew made with pickled vegetables, the vinegar aroma increasing ten fold. Vayne gagged at its potency. Noah dipped his finger into the stew and tasted it, "Perfect." He placed it on the bench and returned to the bathroom to finish grooming.

"Who could you be fantasising about to make you want to put such an effort in?" Vayne asked Noah, knowing that he would not get a response. There was a soft knock at the door, "Oh, don't worry Gabranth, I won't tell anyone," Vayne chuckled before Noah opened the door. Vayne's jaw would have hit the floor, if it were physically possible; at the door was none other that Princess Ashelia herself.

"Ash," Noah greeted his guest, politely, "I am so glad you could make it."

"Gabranth you cad!" Vayne chided his hound, "Lusting after the woman you tried to kill! And I though my tastes were eclectic." He watched in greater interest as the Princess gave her coat to Noah and she wore something even more revealing than her combat outfit. "If she bends over in that I'll see everything!" Vayne warned them, "And she'll fall out the top!" Noah put some music on; "Oh not that bloody song again!"

The Judge offered her his hand to dance, "I'm so glad you didn't change your mind," he whispered to his guest as they danced.

"How could I?" Vayne mocked, "You killed my father, nearly killed me, but you look smashing in your judge's armour, so really, how could I say no?"

"What is that delightful aroma?" the princess asked, sounding as if she liked the stench.

"This is getting perverted," Vayne complained, not that his words had any affect on them. "I can only hope that the princess in real life has a working sense of smell," he watched Noah lead her to the table and serve her a steaming bowl of stew. Vayne would have thrown up if he could, but the cursed state he found himself in meant that he was a captive audience to the dreamscape.

He looked elsewhere when they began to eat; he knew that Landian food usually consisted of things he really did not want to think about. The giggling from the princess drew his attention. "Noah, you are so funny!" she cried, her breast jiggling more than they would naturally.

Noah smiled, shyly, "no I'm not."

"Oh Venat! Is he actually blushing?" Vayne exclaimed in disgust, unable to turn away from the airship crash unfolding before him.

"Yes you are," The Princess replied, reaching for Noah's hand, "And so much more."

"Great," Vayne cried, "Now she's blushing. You know, Gabranth, for a man who would frequently take multiple women to bed, this dream of yours is sickeningly innocent! And it has an annoying soundtrack!" he stood next to Noah, lowering his head to Noah's ear and screamed, "This is the worst erotic dream I have ever had the misfortune of seeing!"

The couple did not react to Vayne's outburst; instead, Noah lifted Ash's hand to his lips, "Shall we retire?"

"Please do," Vayne answered, glaring at the couple, "Leave me in peace."

At first, it appeared that they would indeed, leave Vayne alone, he dropped into the armchair and reclined, waiting for the dream to end.

The room around him shimmered, puzzling the displaced spirit of Vayne, once the surroundings settled he found himself sitting on a rather large and plush bed. "Curious," he uttered, looking around. He gasped when his eyes found a very naked Gabranth cradled between the luscious thighs of the princess. Her face was contorted with pleasure as the Judge pounded into, his lips caressing her slender neck with delicate kisses. "By the Gods," he cursed in wonder, unable to take his eyes from the purely intimate sight.

Noah drove himself into his lover, sliding his calloused hand up her thigh to the soft curve of her rump and back again, as though savouring the silken skin.

"Just take what you want, Gabranth," Vayne yelled, "It's your dream, why bother with her pleasure?" Noah still ignored the captive audience and continued to delight his partner with gentle caresses and powerful thrusts.

Vayne felt a powerful orgasm shoot through him, but the sight he was watching had vanished and he was staring at the ceiling of the hospital ward, Noah had woken up.

"Shit!" the Judge cursed quietly. Vayne knew what had happened; he could feel it, the rapidly cooling goo that coated the inside of Noah's pyjama pants. "I am too old for this." Noah carefully removed the covers and made his way over to the door to his room, closing it as silently as he could.

Noah, flicked the light on and walked over to the small, stainless steel basin in the wall, he removed his pyjama pants and proceeded to wash them with a small amount of soap from the dispenser.

"_I felt that_," Vayne said dryly, "_The show could do with a little more work … and your choice of the princess was a surprise._"

"That was _not_ the princess," Noah growled through clenched teeth as he scrubbed his seed from the clothing, "And why are you bothering me again?"

"_I do not sleep, apparently_," Vayne sighed, nonchalantly.

"Just my luck," Noah checked his work, they were clean, but now they were wet, he groaned and placed them over the back of a chair to dry, "I hope they are dry by morning."

* * *

Both Ashe and Ash laid in bed, neither spoke a word as neither were in the mood for talking as they did the night before. Basch snored from the next room loudly; the girls would have laughed if they had felt more jovial. Ashelia listened to the thunderous snoring, each drone pulled hat her heart, they were Basch's snores, and no matter how loud they were or monstrous they sounded, she could not hate the sound. Ash on the other hand did not hear the snoring; she lay with her ear-buds firmly planted within the canal of her ear, listening to a song that her departed fiancé had sang for her in his beautifully deep voice; although, in her opinion, all Maoris had beautiful singing voices.

She looked over at the time, in a few more minutes it would be midnight; she failed to find the will to sleep. Unlike the year before, she felt guilt for her feelings for another, this day should be reserved for the memory of her Russell, not thinking of ways to seduce a man nearly twice her age.

Ash rolled onto her side, huffing with frustration. "Ash?" Ashe called softy.

"Yeah," Ash responded in kind.

"Are you alright?"

Ash chuckled sadly, "I think so." She paused for a minute or two, "Ashe?"

"Yes?"

"Do you ever feel guilty for loving someone, since you've been widowed?"

Ashe thought for a moment, "I did at first," she explained, "especially with seeing his ghost everywhere we went."

"You saw Rasler's ghost?"

"Yes … well … sort of, it was the Occuria trying to manipulate me into doing their dirty work."

"And?"

"Well, I knew that Rasler would not want me to pine for him forever, he would want me happy," Ashe smiled to herself, thinking of Basch. "Why did you ask me such a personal question?"

Ash sighed, "It's my late fiancé's birthday tomorrow," she noted the time, "Today."

Ashe drew her twin into her arms, "I'm so sorry, if I had known …"

"I asked you, remember?" Ash sobbed into Ashe's shoulder, "I feel guilty about what is going on in my head at the moment."

"Do I want to know?" Ashe asked playfully, trying to cheer the girl up.

"It's Noah," she confessed, "I feel drawn to him like a magnet to iron. I have never … ever felt like that towards someone before in my life."

Ashe looked down at Ash, "By the gods, you're serious," she noted the tears in her eyes, "you're thinking of Noah?"

"I stupidly thought that he would be a silly little crush," her lips slowly curled upwards; "he called me his angel, for giving him blood."

"I am so glad he saw you first," Ashe giggled, "could you imagine the mess if he developed feelings for me?" Both girls laughed.

Ash felt relief wash through her, tomorrow she would say her good-byes to Russell and try to find the courage to move on with her life.

* * *

Note: Noah was listening to Duran Duran's Hungry Like The Wolf


	5. Chapter 5

I am sorry for the delay, I have neglected my fanfic stories in favour of some originals that have been well received on another site. This chapter has been sitting on the verge of completion for months and decided to finally finish it and post it as an Easter treat (Or which ever holiday of either cultural or religious significance you celebrate at this time of year)

I must say this is not for children as it contains sexual content of a rather graphic nature.

* * *

Chapter Four: New Discoveries.

Balthier was restless, and cold. The night was giving way to a frosty morning and he did not wear anything to bed the previous night, which he now regretted. He would be shopping with Ash today to find clothing as his supply of dashing leather vests, cotton shirts and form fitting leather trousers had perished in the crash. Alex had been nice enough to lend him some clothing, but he would have to return them eventually. The flannelette pyjamas he had were warm but on the chest of draws across the room and the extra blankets were in the large trunk at the bottom of the bed and both required leaving the marginal warmth of the sheets to acquire them.

His mind battled with the prospect of extra warmth after a shock of momentary cold or put up with the slightly inadequate warmth already available. He did not have to think about it for too long, his bladder feeling like it was about to explode. "Damnit," he cursed, rising from the bed, the chilled air felt little better that ice directly on the skin, causing goose-bumps to erupt all over him.

He quickly ran for the bathroom, cursing again as his feet came in contact with the cold tiles. Deciding that he would warm up another way, he made a b-line to the shower and turned it on. Within moments the bathroom filled with steam and Balthier felt warm again, he slipped under the hot running water and sighed in contentment. The shower was larger than the one on the Strahl and felt guilty for enjoying something over his beloved ship. His poor ship, now nothing but twisted wreckage in the field, Nono would kill him. "Nono?" He realised that he had completely forgot about the little rodent and his team of engineers who had been working furiously in the engine room during the escape. "SHIT!" He leapt out of the shower and quickly found some clothing.

Racing down the stairs with no concern for the sleeping occupants of the house he made his way out to what was left of the Strahl. His feet hurt from the numerous rocks he stomped on whilst trying to see if his miniature crew were alright.

As he approached he could hear the sound of moogles singing, he had not expected this, nor did he expect the tiny lights radiating from the holes in the shell. "Nono?" He called out, making sure he did not imagine the strange vision.

"KUPO! Master Balthier!" The excited little moogle cried, sticking his head out from a hole in the engine bay, "You Live!"

The pirate stopped at the hole that everyone had escaped from a few days ago, all four moogles had not only survived but looked nearly uninjured, with the exception of a nick out of Nono's left ear.

"We have been working hard to fix the Strahl, Kupo!" One of Nono's apprentices chirped, "But the skystone appears to have lost its power, it won't do anything."

"And the hull is no longer water-tight," Nono added, "We were flooded and nearly drowned!"

Balthier laughed, "The Strahl will never fly again, we are no longer in Ivalice but in a place where mist holds no magicks."

"What will happen to us?" Nono shrieked, "My mate is back in Bhujerba!"

The pirate sobered, he had forgotten that Nono had taken a mate during their travels with the Princess, "We are stuck here, I'm afraid," Nono slumped to the ground, "Come," Balthier picked up the devastate little creature, "Let's get you inside."

* * *

Balthier had given up any hope of getting any sleep that night, his moogle crew needed him. Sitting them on the four bar-stools at the breakfast bar he gave each of them a warm drink and a sandwich. A part of him was glad that they were all alright, but they would have a harder time fitting in than Fran would, to this world the tiny moogles were alien.

"Master Balthier?" Squeaked the small female, "What are we to do now?" Her eyes pleading with him. "I have only ever known the workings of the Strahl's engine room, I cannot sing or dance like my brothers could, nor could I play any musical instruments like my parents!"

"Nikki, don't cry," Balthier tried to calm the little moogle as tears sprang from her eyes, "Why don't we talk with Fran about her little project, I'm sure she would love the help."

The moogles nodded and fell into silence, eating their fill of the sandwiches. Within moments, one by one, they fell asleep, drooping onto the breakfast bar in front of them. The pirate moved them to the living room and laid them on the couch with a blanket each. He returned to the kitchen and made himself a coffee as the sun began to edge its way skyward on the eastern horizon.

"You're up early," one of the Princesses greeted him.

"Which one are you?" He asked in a teasing tone, sipping at his mug of caffeinated goodness.

"The one who would like to know what those creatures are in the lounge," She stated curiously.

"Ah, the local," he chuckled, placing his hot beverage down, "So what have you planned for today?" He crossed his arms across his chest, watching the way this girl moved, her less than graceful movements nearly made him laugh.

"Few things," she said, digging into the chest freezer and pulling out a lump of frozen meat, "What about you?"

"Finding something for those creatures you asked about to do to keep them occupied," he could not help noticing the curve of her behind, so much like the Princess's and not so out of reach. "They're called moogles and they hate not having anything to do."

"Where did they come from?" She asked, moving over to the kettle.

"From mummy and daddy moogles I would imagine," he chuckled at the cynical glare she sent him.

"No Shit," she replied with enough sarcasm to spread on her morning toast.

Balthier laughed, "They have been trying to fix the wreckage of the Strahl since we first arrived," he sighed at the memory of his beloved ship, "I have no idea how they survived, but if they have nothing to keep their hands and minds moving they go insane."

"Sounds like Aunt Mabel, she has that OCD. Her house is immaculate and god help you if you move something from where it had been placed."

Ghis walked into the kitchen now, picking the sleep out of the corners of his eyes, "Morning," he greeted them and also made a cup of coffee, "Sleep well?"

"Balthier has found moogles?" She looked at the pirate for confirmation of what they were called. He nodded and she continued, "Inside the wreckage of his ship."

"Are they alright?" The Judge asked, concerned for the little creatures' welfare.

"They're fine," Balthier informed him, "Though I do believe they will be quite bored until they find something to occupy their time."

Ghis chuckled, "There is plenty for them to do around here," he waved his hand around, "I do hope they will be comfortable here, we humes are fortunate that the people here generally ignore one another, unless we stand out in some way." He sighed, "They do not even look like any of the pets here."

"They are very cute," Ash smiled, looking over at their sleeping forms, "We will have to keep my nieces and nephews away from them."

"True," Ghis shrugged, looking at the young woman, "Especially Rachael and Rebecca."

Ash laughed at the thought of her two nieces, who were only four years old, trying to play with the moogles like the way they do with their kitten Henry. "I think we should keep them out of sight when we have visitors," the young woman giggled.

The three chatted until the sun came fully up. Nothing deeply philosophical, quite the opposite with stupid anecdotes of Balthier's life as a notorious sky pirate in Ivalice and Ghis's mission to hunt down the man who he believed stole his daughter's innocence.

"What's with all the laughing?" Penelo asked, sleepily from the doorway, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Balthier was boasting about the many women he's slept with," Ash informed her with a smirk playing on her lips; "I do not think he has left many women out."

"Well he hasn't touched me," Penelo smiled victoriously, "No one has and I plan to keep it that way until I find the right person."

"My dear," Balthier grinned, "You are not yet grown enough to physically deal with what I have to offer. You are still a child and I fear that the pleasure would be too much for you to handle."

The blond looked at the pirate incredulously, "A child am I? Who helped bring down a tyrant? Pray tell oh masterful one, what makes me still a child and not a woman?" She folded her arms across her chest defiantly awaiting his response.

"You will not be of age until a month after Vaan," Balthier arrogantly replied, his grin only serving to aggravate the girl.

"Do you know when that is?" She asked, her eyes focusing on Balthier's, her eyebrows drawing down.

"No," he said after a moment of silence.

"When we defeated Bergen at Mount Bur Omisace," Penelo raised her voice, waking the four moogles in the lounge room.

"Miss Penelo?" Nono enquired, poking his little pink nose around the door.

"Nono!" She cried, forgetting the dumfounded look on Balthier's face and scooped the miniature engineer into her arms to give him a big hug, "I was so worried for you!"

If he were not covered with the silky white fur of his species, Penelo would have seen the brightest blush the moogle had ever experienced. "Miss Penelo, I can't breathe."

"I'm sorry, Nono," Penelo lowered the moogle to the ground and he began to beat his wings to return to the level of the conversation.

"I am uninjured," he spoke with a yawn, briefly faltering in his levitation.

Ash finished her coffee with a gulp, "Well, I have to go get his Lordship and his Knight Protector up to visit the recovering Magister." She left casually, leaving Balthier, Penelo and Nono with Ghis in the kitchen.

* * *

Basch had just stepped out of the shower, a cold shower, the dream he had from the night before had affected him in ways he had not expected. He was sixteen the last time he had one of _those_ dreams and who was in it did not help any. But Ashe looked so beautiful in that little black dress and the way her legs wrapped around his waist felt so right. It was then he had realised that his fantasy had overridden his resilience against her beauty and had to rectify it quick.

"Basch?" Ash called, opening his bedroom door, "You up?"

The blond knight opened the bathroom door to find the doppelganger of his desires sitting on his bed and looking out the window, "Ashling, you're here early."

The girl gave him a subtle smile, "I have something I must do before we get to the hospital to visit your brother," she returned her focus out of the window as the night gave way to the long shadows of the dawn.

"It must be important," he commented, walking over to the pile of new clothing he had prepared the night before.

Ash nodded slowly, before tearing her gaze from the mountains in the distance and directed it towards Basch, who had already slipped a grey t-shirt on, "Something like that." She looked up into his eyes, "You have the same eyes."

The knight laughed, "We get them from our father," without thinking or caring, he whipped off his towel and donned his underwear, "We get our hair from our mother."

Ash took no notice to what Basch was doing, "Who dominates your appearance then, your mother or father?"

He thought for a moment, sitting next to her and putting on his socks, "Our father," he smiled, remembering his sire as a strong and powerful man, "Our mother was a petite beauty with delicate features and how in all of Ivalice she was able to keep Noah and I under control is a mystery to me."

"I take it that the two of you were a handful," the young woman mused, resting her elbows on her knees and bowing her head, "My parents split shortly after I was born so I never had the traditional family thing, Mum left for London when Dad got custody of me."

He nudged her with his shoulder, "Hey, don't go all melancholy," He gave her an encouraging grin.

"I know you know what today is, Basch," she spoke with an underlying sadness in her voice, "I saw you looking at Russell's Photo."

He did not know that she had seen him yesterday, "You and the Princess have a lot in common."

"I know," she sighed, "But has she come to terms with her husband's death?"

"Only recently," he explained, "The Occuria were using her grief as a way to manipulate the Princess into doing their dirty work … and it worked until they tried to make out that the late Prince Rassler wanted her to take revenge, which went against his character. She didn't take it too well."

"Wow," Ash sat up again, "That's really harsh." She looked over to Basch, "Did you know Rassler at all?"

Basch nodded, "Since he was a boy, I held him when he died; he made me promise to look after Ashelia."

"You know she likes you," Ash said, standing up, "What better way to take care of her."

"I sore an oath …" he began to argue the same reason for not making a move on Ashe.

"Which means nothing in this world, Basch," She gave him a playful slap on the shoulder, "Unless you want Balthier to get the girl?"

"NO!" Basch felt a surge of anger shoot through him, Ashelia would be susceptible to heartache and grief if she settled for the pirate.

"Than act like the knight in shining armour and go get her," Ash urged him, "But not right now because you have to see your brother."

Basch softened again, "Are you hoping for your own knight in shining armour?"

"I was thinking of a Pretty Woman scenario," she said with a slight grin.

"I do not understand the reference," he shook his head and frowned slightly.

"Never mind," Ash chortled, "Come on, we should get Larsa. He'll get upset if we leave him behind."

* * *

The young lord was already up, he was still tired yet he could not return to slumber. He yawned a very satisfying yawn, one that his staff back in Archades would have scolded him for but he was no longer there and the pros of living in this new world became more apparent by the day. He dressed at a leisurely pace and headed down for breakfast.

After a bowl of cereal and a cup of orange juice he hunted down Ash, not wanting to be late for another visit with his guardian. He found Basch first sitting in the living room flicking through channels on the television to find something to watch, "My young lord," Basch greeted him in a fatherly tone, "You are ready?"

"I am," Larsa smiled proudly, flattening any creases he had, "Where is Ash?"

"She is looking for you actually," he stood and stretched, "When you weren't in your room she went looking for you."

Ashe entered the lounge dressed in black, "Have you heard the news?" She asked happily, "Nono and the others are alive and are here!"

Larsa's eyes widened with joy, moogles were reputed to be gifted in everything artistic and creative. "Where are they?"

"With Penelo in the Family room watching something on the picture box," Ashe answered, pointing to one of the other large living spaces in the house.

"I'll be back soon!" The young boy bonded off to see Penelo and the furry cluster of moogles with her.

Basch watched in awe as the boy left the room, "Without all the worries and responsibilities of his birthright he is quickly becoming a regular child."

"I envy him," Ashe sighed, "Such enthusiasm for this new life of ours."

"I am sure you will also find comfort in this new life," Basch took his time to survey the Princess's appearance, "You look nice today. Though, why the black?"

"I know what Ash plans to do today," she replied solemnly, "She will need comfort afterwards."

Basch could not say a word, how could he? The Princess knew what her newly proclaimed twin was going through. At some level he knew Ashe was also feeling the loss of Rassler again, as fresh as the day he brought the Prince's body back to her. "You are a strong young woman," he finally said, resisting the urge to hold her, "She is lucky to have you."

Ashe laughed softly and Basch's heart melted, "I hate to admit it, but I believe your brother has had a lot to do with her decision today." She shook her head and sighed, "I have to say that I still hate him for killing my father. However, his charisma is quite evident and I find my self liking him despite myself."

"He was always the more likable of the two of us," Basch chuckled, "When we were younger he was always the one to have a new girlfriend or picked out to give a speech." Ashe cocked her eyebrow at the revealed information. "Shortly before Archadia invaded, one of our instructors from the Academy fell to his charms. His flirting abilities are second to none, even Balthier would loose to Noah."

"That I would like to see!" Ashe exclaimed.

"See what?" Ashling asked as she entered the room with the young lord Larsa.

"Nothing," Basch answered before Ashe could repeat the conversation, "Are you ready?"

Ash nodded, "Just want to get some flowers from the garden, then we'll go."

* * *

Vossler filled his mug with fresh hot coffee and sat down with a pile of toast in the family room. He loved Friday's, they were so energised and relaxed all at the same time. Switching channels to a morning program to catch up on world events, he settled down to enjoy his breakfast. Ghis followed with a similar breakfast, only he had a couple of croissants.

"We have croissants?" Vossler asked incredulously, eying the taste pastries with envy.

"No," Ghis responded, "I brought these early this morning from that bakery in town." He took a moment to savour the buttery taste, chewing slowly and showing much more delight then was actually experienced.

"You are a bastard," Vossler grumbled, "You know that?"

"Yes," the former Magister smiled as he took another bite, "One of the benefits of _getting _your drivers license."

"Not my fault!" The former knight protested, "That bitch wouldn't pay attention!" He placed his breakfast down and huffed, "And I got her every time!"

Ghis chuckled and passed him the other pastry, "Not a complete bastard … anymore."

A small snort from Penelo, who sat by the heater with the litter of moogles around her, drew their attention to her, "Ghis, this world has turned you into a puppy," she laughed.

"No, but it has helped me become what I once was," he smiled, "The croissants are on the bench in the kitchen."

Both Penelo and Vossler raced off to the kitchen to indulge their hunger more enjoyably.

Noah looked around his room, making sure it was completely empty of unwanted eyes. After confirming his solitude he eased out of bed and retrieved the still slightly damp pyjama pants and slipped them on as a woman with a trolley entered with his breakfast.

_What is that?_ Vayne asked with a hint of distain in his voice.

_Breakfast,_ Noah thought back, hoping that his silent response was enough for Vayne to hear.

_Glad I'm not eating it._

* * *

Noah sighed and smiled at the nurse, "Good morning."

The nurse, who had usually spent her time across the hall with geriatric patients, smiled and greeted him in return, "Sleep well?"

Vayne chuckled at the recall of the dream, _Very well I should think._

"Yes," the Judge replied, ignoring Vayne's remark. "What do we have this morning?"

"Cereal, wholegrain toast with Vegemite and orange juice," she replied swiftly, "And you choice of scrambled eggs, poached eggs or boiled eggs."

_Eggs of what?_ Vayne asked cautiously, _if I have to taste it, I want to know what creature they come from!_

_I don't care what creature they come, I'm hungry!_ "I'll take the poached eggs please," Noah's politeness to the nurse angered Vayne considerably. The nurse blushed slightly at Noah's smile and gave him the allotted two eggs. "Thank you."

"My pleasure," she giggled and left quickly.

Unlike other times Noah flirted, he did not intend it to do anything other than to annoy Vayne and judging from the frustrated huff from the other occupant of his body. He tucked into the breakfast in front of his and pretended to enjoy it more than he actually did.

_How can you eat that swill? _Vayne asked indignantly.

"Because it aggravates you ant there is nothing you can do about it," he smirked, taking another mouthful of the sweet cereal and moaned like it was the best thing he ever tasted.

_When I get my body back …_

"You can do nothing," Noah chuckled, "And I heard that you body needs a considerable amount of work to even do the most basic of tasks."

_Why are you so cheerful? _The deposed Emperor enquired. _You always hated being stuck in the infirmary, why the change?_

Noah grinned secretively, "I always endure something important if I have the right incentive."

_You insufferable bastard, how can laying in bed all day and be happy about it?_ Vayne knew he was only inviting grief with the questing but he could not stop himself.

"Lets just say that this world has a lot going for it."

_Anything I would enjoy?_ Vayne sarcastically asked, _would I be able to control an empire here?_

Noah laughed, "Not a chance."

* * *

Ashe sat in the back of the car with Larsa who smiled, he enjoyed these trips to the Hospital in the car. It was not as smooth as the hover-cars of Archades, he knew he was moving in this car. Ashe would have enjoyed the trip also if it had not been for where they were heading first, the city cemetery.

The occupants were quiet, the only sound came from the bunch of flowers Basch held for Ash, pink carnations, cyclamens, several sweet pea blossoms and a deep crimson rose. Ash said nothing as they drove, her heart sinking with dread at the task ahead.

Finally the car entered the car-park of the graveyard, without uttering a word Ash parked the car and got out, taking the flowers with her.

"Should we go with her?" Larsa asked, watching the young woman walk away.

"No," Basch sighed, "She needs to do this alone."

Ash came to a small plot with a modest headstone, "Hey Russ," she greeted the grave, "Happy Birthday." She fought back the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks, "Can't believe you've been gone for a year and a half, it feels a lot longer." She sniffed and the tears escaped, "I miss you so much." She wept openly, her face contorting with grief.

Ashe would not wait for Basch to say something, she left the car and ran to her twin's side, pulling her into her arms. Who else would be better qualified to comfort a woman who lost the man she loved? "It's alright, you can do this," she hushed Ash, stroking her hair as though they had known each other since they were children.

Basch frowned at the sudden departure of the Princess, this was a private moment for Ash and she was imposing on it.

At the grave Ash slowly composed herself, "Thank you Ashe," she hugged the closest thing to a sister she ever had. "Russ, this is Ashe. She came from that Ivalice place I told you about, her a few others lit'rally fell out of the sky and its more than just their lives that have suddenly changed." Ash stopped.

"You can do this," Ashe repeated, "He would want you to be happy."

Ash nodded, "I've met someone, Russ." The tears threatened to spill again, "I saved his life actually, but you will never hear me admit that to him." Ashe chuckled at the quip. "He's not perfect, not like you, but he seems to be honest and I only hope he feels the same as I do."

Basch and Larsa had left the car and moved slowly to the girls, the sorrow this girl felt matched the Princess's when they had arrived at Balfonheim after Reddas passed on and Ashe had sliced through the apparition of Rassler. She howled at the loss of her husband for a second time but swore to be stronger than she had before.

"I think I'm ready to move on, my love," Ash declared, her resolve clear in her tone. "I won't forget you, I will visit on your birthday every year. I promise." The three humes stood waiting for her to turn away. "I am ready for life again." Ash laid the bouquet on the grave and stood to leave, "Good-bye Russ."

Without looking at her companions, Ash walked back to the car and got in.

Ashe sighed, knowing that her friend will need time to calm down. Larsa didn't say a word, not sure what to do. Basch, like Ashe knew to give their new friend time to recover from the pain she felt.

"Hey! Guys!" Ash called out through the drivers window, "I'm sure Noah is wondering where you are!" her voice masking any heartache she felt.

Larsa smiled and ran to his seat behind Ash, the other two joined him shortly after. "Are you alright?" Ashe asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah," Ash replied, sounding her usual joyous self., "It's been a year and a half since the accident," her resolve faltered momentarily, "Widows only have to wait a year to be socially acceptable to move on." She started the car and put it into gear. "We don't want to keep the invalid waiting do we?" She smiled at Larsa through the rear vision mirror and drove off.

* * *

The alarm next to Alex's bed went off with an irritating buzz causing the doctor to grumble and hit the snooze button. Rolling over, he buried his face into his pillow and tried to return to his wonderful dream. All too quickly the alarm sounded again and he sat up, cursing quietly to himself and dragged himself to the en suite for a shower.

After dressing and grooming he left his dark bedroom to find a bite to eat. Still dozy, he did not notice the small furry creature hovering at the refrigerator. He pulled a mug out of the cupboard and put the kettle on. After preparing his tea he turned to the fridge to see Nono hovering and trying to make up his mind on what to grab.

"What the Fuck?" Alex asked, rubbing his tired eyes to check he was not still dreaming.

"Kupo! I did not see you there!" Nono cried in surprise, "Forgive me, I was hungry when I woke."

Alex blinked a few times, "What are you?" He demanded more than asked.

The cheerful little moogle fluttered over to him and offered his hand, "I am Nono, sir. I am a moogle, Kupo!"

"What is a moogle?" Alex shook his head, "How did you get here?"

"I am a moogle, sir," Nono answered politely, "I came with Master Balthier."

"So you're from that place," Alex nodded, returning to his cup of tea, "Remind me to talk to your _master_ later." He yawned and sipped his tea and left the kitchen.

Nono stared after him and shook his head, "Sir needs more sleep, Kupo!"

* * *

Fran stretched out in the lounge, wriggling her clawed toes contently. Everyone had gone into the family room to greet the moogles or just watch some morning television, she on the other hand just wanted to relax.

Alex joined her silently on the arm chair, "I just met a moogle," he declared flatly.

The Viera turned and smiled, "Don't worry, even I find them strange," she admitted, "Though you will love them, they can fix just about anything and are quite artistic."

"As long as they clean up after themselves it won't be a problem," he added, "I'm guessing they are like all other animals and shed every year?" His expression was one of annoyance rather than curiosity.

Fran laughed not able to keep a straight face with his comical expression. "Yes, they do." She managed to calm down and begin to take in the man's appearance in full, much like his sister and the Princess in facial features only more defined, his nose sharper, a heavier brow and a slightly cleft chin. His hair was golden brown, green eyes like his sisters and pale skin, no doubt from his occupation requiring him to spent most of his time in doors. "Tell me Alex," she began, leaning closer to him, "Are you involved in a relationship?"

Alex blinked his eyes at the alien woman, was she testing the waters to see if he was available? "No," he responded meekly not daring to look away from her ruby eyes.

"Are you inclined towards woman or men?" She continued, sensing his discomfort.

"Um," he hesitated, "Women more than men."

Fran cocked her eyebrow at the answer, "Are you saying that you are inclined to both?" Her grin grew wider.

"Shush," he begged, "I don't want the whole house knowing!" His voice tainted with fear, "Do you have any idea how I will be treated if they knew?"

Fran's grin changed to a frown, "They would treat you differently because of your preference for both sexes?"

"You don't understand," he hurriedly explained, what left of his fatigue vanishing rapidly, "It is socially acceptable to be straight, it is acceptable to be gay but for some reason if you prefer both you are treated as a pervert!" He took a gulp of his tea, "And I am no sicko."

She nodded, understanding his dilemma, "Where I come from, such openness is normal. The males of my species are hunters and spend most of their time hunting prey for the village and females are, shall we say, energetic in the bedroom. So when a male is otherwise engaged with providing for our people the women seek each other for comfort."

He sighed with relief, she was like him and not appalled by it. "Is it like that all over Ivalice?"

She shook her head, "Rozzaria is very strict with the sex life of its citizens, straight only. Archades is very much like it is here though not too bothered by bisexuals, they are for the most part ignored. Landis, Basch's home was conservative on the surface and underneath completely the opposite and Dalmasca and Nebradia were accepting providing you didn't flaunt it everywhere. When it comes to the religious types," she huffed amused at the irony of that situation, "They tell you to abide to the laws of nature, being strictly male/female relations and do the opposite."

"Maybe I was born on the wrong planet," he relaxed, "You know that ninety percent of the human race is bi in varying degrees, and ninety percent of them are in denial."

Fran laughed again, her husky giggle catching something in the doctor making him join her. "You will find that goes for the population of this house also."

"I don't doubt that," he chuckled.

Fran stood up from her seat and walked over to Alex, a predatory grin playing on her lips. Alex gulped at the sight of her scantily clad body, his eyes travelling over her mocha thighs up past her flat stomach to the succulent mounds of her breasts. "If you like, I could retrieve the Pirate and we can make a day of it," she suggested, Alex had no idea whether she was joking or not.

"Balthier would be up for that?" He asked, checking if she was indeed jesting.

She settled on his lap, straddling his hips and wrapping her arms around his neck, "He has not had a problem in the past with it," she shrugged, "He did not complain when we helped Basch recuperate from his imprisonment in Nalbina."

Alex rested him hands on her hips, "You know, you can give a man dirty thoughts if behaviour like that."

She smiled and lowered her lips to his, "I hope so."

Alex's breath froze in his throat as Fran's long tongue dove deep enough to tickle hi tonsils. Her claws began to shred through his shirt to access his pale skin underneath. The neurologist had no idea what to think, he knew he liked what was happening. Fran's gentle purring increased to a more demanding pitch as she guided his hands to where her outfit fastened so he could explore her.

Catching on to her non-verbal commands, Alex took over the task with vigour letting his fingers caress her suede flesh. His head was spinning with Fran's musky scent filling the room, he was sure that the blood was rushing more to his lower body than his head. Without realising it Fran had removed his clothing by reducing them to nothing more than a pile of rags. The glint in her eye spoke of untold pleasures as she perused his naked lithe body, her gaze lingering on the hardness that throbbed so tantalisingly in his lap, she licked her lips in anticipation. "I suddenly feel very hungry," she groaned, "You wish to feed me?"

Alex's eyes bulged at the innuendo, this woman knew what to say to ignite the blood and arouse the imagination. With a coy smile she crawled off his lap and down onto the floor. She used that long tongue of hers in slow strokes up the inside of his thighs, stopping short of his manhood only to repeat it on the other side. The sensation was driving him insane, her tongue was like a cat's tongue, rough but not too rough the texture teasing goosebumps to erupt at the slightest touch. He could not stop the moan from slipping from his lips nor the involuntary thrust of his hips as she crept close to him. The worst torture and the greatest bliss all rolled into one, that was her tongue.

He had no idea how long this had been going on for but it all changed when Fran made contact with the soft wrinkled flesh of his second most treasured part of his anatomy. Alex nearly leapt out of his skin at the shock but soon relaxed into the new rhythm as she slowly crept closer to her goal. Languidly she traced her tongue up the throbbing shaft listening to his moans and rapid heartbeat. She could not tease him like this for too much longer, he was not use to it. She wrapped her tongue around the hard muscle and closed her mouth around it.

"Dear God!" He cried at he incredible pulsing Fran generated with her nimble tongue. Her mouth felt so warm and inviting that he feared he would disgrace himself by loosing control too soon. The Viera took great pleasure in listening to the soft gasps and moans and decided to try something naughty. Along with a soft humming she slid her hand under him to find the forbidden entrance as Balthier liked to call it. With her claw the teased the tight circular muscle and Alex lost control, his seed exploded forcefully down her throat but she did not stop sucking until he begged for her to stop.

With a gentle plopping sound, Fran moved back and grinned at the doctor with a look of feline satisfaction, "That was nothing," she chuckled playfully, "Take it as a prelude of what is to come later tonight.

All Alex could do was nod, overwhelmed by her skill and beauty.

* * *

Larsa was the first in the room again, his joy at seeing his guardian evident in the smile he wore. It was the first time the Princess had seen the two interact in such a way, it reminded her of the way she would run to Basch and throw herself into his arms for him to lift her up and spin her around until both were dizzy. That was many years ago and now Basch could barely look at her.

"Where is Ash?" Noah asked after he realised that the beautiful woman was not the one he was waiting for.

"She will be here shortly, brother," Basch replied, "She is having a difficult day so ease up a bit."

Noah nodded and tried to remain joyous for Larsa. The minutes ticked by and still Ash had not entered in her usual cocky way to greet and torment him with her loveliness. "Do you think she is alright?" He finally asked when she still did not enter the room after nearly an hour.

"I'll go check on her," Ashe suggested looking towards Basch as though asking him for permission to do so.

When he nodded she left the room. Out in the corridor Ashling sat against the wall with her head in her arms. Ashe approached slowly not wanting to startle her. "Ash, are you alright?"

Ash sniffed as she looked up, her eyes red and filled with tears, "Yeah, its just so hard to face him right now."

Ashe crouched down next to her, "Remember that Russell would want you to move on and be happy," she reminded her.

"I know," Ash replied with a faint smile, "But it does not stop the guilt of being here without Russell. We promised to live a long happy life together."

The Princess sighed, "We cannot always get what we planned for," She explained, "If we could, you and I would never have met as I would still be a Princess back in Dalmasca with my father governing over the kingdom and Rassler a proud general in the Order of Dalmasca. I might have even been a mother by now."

Ash nodded, "Russell and I were going to be married on Valentines day this year, instead I spent the day moping around the house listening to depressing music."

"I am sure he would not have wanted you to do that," Ashe said kindly, "I know that Rassler would not have wanted me to mourn the two years I did. He would have wanted me to move on and find someone else."

"Yet you have not," Ash chuckled dryly, "I know who is on your mind yet nothing has happened there."

Ashe saddened, "Sometimes our station in life restricts our choice of partner."

"Only snobs think that way," Ash snorted, "You should let your heart decide."

"Only if you take the same advice."

Ash nodded, "Touché."

Ashe helped her to her feet. "You deserve to be happy," she smiled, "Even if it _is _with Gabranth."

"Noah," Ash corrected her with a hopeful smirk, "And you are right, I should stop being a coward and just take what I want, _take life by the balls_ so to speak."

Ashe gave her a confused glance and shrugged it off, this world had too many confusing sayings to worry about all of them. "He is ready to come looking for you if I do not return with you."

Ash giggled, "Alright, I get the hint." She followed Ashe into the room to see a very worried looking Noah, an amused Basch and curious young Larsa.

"Where have you been?" Noah asked much to the enjoyment of his twin.

"Dealing with my inner demons," she waved off, "Nothing I can't handle." Though her eyes were still swollen from the tears she shed earlier her smile radiated her feelings without misunderstanding.

The Judge could feel his heart rate rising at her appearance in the doorway, the redness around her eyes made her look vulnerable and his need to hold her increased. "Are you alright?" He asked her sincerely.

"Yeah, I'm good," her curt reply spoke more than she intended, it said she was in pain. "Really."

Noah felt a stab in his heart, _this is ridiculous_, he thought to himself, _Basch said she was having a bad day._

_Maybe she's sick of seeing you? _Vayne quipped, the amusement evident in his voice.

_Will you just leave me alone? _Noah responded dryly. He had an irritated look on his face that concerned those with him.

"You alright?" Ash asked him with a concerned look.

He nodded, "Yeah I'm fine."

_Why don't you just tell them about me?_ Vayne goaded.

_Shut up!_

"Noah?" Basch called to his brother who had begun to stare off in the distance, "Noah!"

The Judge jumped at his brother's loud call, "Sorry," he apologised, "I must be tired." He gave Ash a sad smile knowing that his statement would end their visit. He had wanted a moment alone with Ash, just to be near her.

Everyone said their goodbyes and exited the room leaving the young beauty with Noah, "I should apologise for my behaviour," Ash began, "I'm sure my brother has filled you in already about my past."

"He has," Noah nodded.

"Well it's Russell's birthday today," she explained, "He would have been twenty-three today."

"Ah," he lowered his eyes, "Sorry."

"You didn't kill him, Noah," Ash said sadly.

"I have killed many who did not deserve it," he admitted, "And I didn't feel guilty about it until I met you."

_You snivelling piece of Chocobo shit_, Vayne interrupted, _you whinged at the first few executions you had to perform._

Ash stood there speechless at Noah's revelation, "I should get going," she quickly said and left.

_Well done_, Vayne taunted, _you scared her off._

* * *

Vaan listlessly watched the morning news, something about a war in _Eerarck_? _Boring_, he thought and switched the channel and found something bright and colourful and played lots of music that made him smile.

"What in the name of the gods are you watching?" Balthier asked from behind him.

"Don't know," Vaan answered, "Just hit this button here," he pointed to the Television remote's channel down button, "And this came on."

Balthier watched the brightly coloured blobs of fur bounce up and down making cute noised like they were enjoying it more than they should. "It sounds like a couple of moogles shagging."

Vaan changed the channel again, "That's disgusting, Balthier."

"It's true though," he slumped on the couch with Vaan.

"Where's Fran?" the thief asked after a moment of silence.

"With Doctor King in the other living room," he sighed exasperatedly, "I would not go in there if I were you."

"Oh?"

"Trust me on this one," he huffed, "She most definitely wants the good doctor to herself right now."

Vaan nodded in understanding, "I'm bored."

"Join the club," Balthier replied, taking the remote to surf the channels, "This thing is useless," he conceded switching the television off. "You want to harass Vossler?"

"Nah, tried that already," Vaan explained, "He said he would rip my balls of if I got in his way again."

"Where is Penelo?"

"She's with the moogles doing something in the building over there," Vaan pointed to the large corrugated iron shed, "No idea what."

"And the only one with nothing that we know of is the elderly Magister himself," Balthier chuffed, forming a plan to bring entertainment at the expense of Ghis. "Where can we find him?"

"In his room, I think," Vaan stood up with a devious grin.

"Excellent."

* * *

Ghis had just finished an email to _IrishHeather65_ and sent it off when he heard a knocking on his bedroom door. "Enter," he answered cheerfully.

"Hey Ghis," Vaan greeted the Magister, "Whatchya doin'?"

"Sending an email to my friend in Ireland," He responded with a smile which threw the two young men.

"What is an 'email'?" Balthier enquired with open honesty.

The elder judge thought about the best way to answer him, "It's a letter than can instantly be read once I finish it by the person I'm sending it to." He pointed to a blue cable sticking out the back of his computer, "Ash said its called an Ethernet cable and it connects me to the Internet."

"What's that?" Vaan asked like a small child.

"Ash calls it a place to get anything you want," the Magister chuckled, "From pornography to banking."

Balthier smirked at Vaan's questioning look. "What's pornography?" He asked eventually when nobody explained anything. Balthier laughed at the young man's question.

Ghis just shook his head and continued with the explanation, "This is a search box," he pointed to the blank space in the upper right corner of the window, "You type in what you want to look for and it will find it for you."

"Can I see what pornography is?" Vaan asked the highly amused Judge who was now chuckling along with Balthier.

"I would not recommend that just yet," Balthier answered for Ghis, "I don't think your mind can handle such a thing."

"Why?" The young thief felt incredibly stupid at that moment

"You are too much of a child to appreciate that particular delight," Ghis answered for Balthier, both chuckling at the comment that Vaan clearly found insulting.

"How would you know if I was too much of a kid to see what it is?" He huffed, frustrated at the older men with their jibes.

"Don't take so personally," Balthier smirked, "Though I am surprised you learnt nothing from Fran and her veracious appetite for all things carnal."

Realisation spread across Vaan's face, "And why would you think I couldn't handle that?"

"Because in comparison to the porn I have seen back home," the pirate smiled mischievously, "Fran's favoured activities are positively tame."

* * *

Noah felt terrible, Ash had not been overly enthusiastic to remain in his presence after the confession of being a killer. "I feel like a fool," he thought aloud.

_You are a fool_, Vayne confirmed, _you admitted to her that you have killed people, she probably sees you as you see me._

"It almost sounds like you pity me," Noah joked dryly.

_You wish hound_, Vayne chuckled, _I like seeing you or rather feeling you in pain_.

"Say it how you like," Noah continued, "I swear I heard compassion in your voice."

_Mere imagination on your part_, Vayne sighed nonchalantly. _But the girl you dreamed about is much more pretty in person, she has secrets though._

"I care not for your appraisal of Ash," Noah warned, "And if she has secrets she will share them with those she trusts."

_Can she trust you?_ Vayne mused, _A killer and a man who has his emperor in his head._

"I will find a way to remove you and I will have peace," the judge declared with intent, "You should be dead with all we inflicted upon your corrupted body."

_Yet your Ash breathed life into my body_, Noah went silent in thought and voice. _She never told you? Interesting._

A moment passed, "She has no knowledge of you or your actions," Noah finally spoke with uncertain strength, "I am sure she would have left you to die if she had known."

Vayne laughed hard, _I doubt that!_

* * *

Penelo entered the garage to view the elegant vehicles Fran had told her about with the moogles in tow. "These are the things I told you about," She told the rodent-like creatures, "They do not fly as far as I can tell and they run on some smelly liquid."

Nono waddled over to the nearest car, the maroon coloured shell with flowing guards over the wheels and wooden trim, his eyes studying the design with interest. "They resemble the Rozzarian vehicles that run on the distillate of oil they extracted from the Sandsea." The other moogles concurred with nods and excited claps. "They will be easy Miss Penelo, Kupo!"

"Really?" Penelo bounced happily, "I will tell Fran, we're going to be rich!"

"People here value these smelly and dirty things?" Toffee, another of the engineering moogle, chirped in disgust.

"It is a lovely shape," Nono countered, "These people are artisans with metal and it will be a pleasure to fix such beautiful vehicles." The Elder moogle flicked a glare at Toffee, "If you do not wish to help us you may find something else to do, Kupo!" Without any more discussion all bar Toffee began to rummage through the shed to find tools and parts to begin fixing the cars. Toffee shrugged and wandered out of the building.

The team of moogles focused on an old Morgan and lifted the bonnet to inspect the engine. Nono shook his head in what appeared to be disgust at the sight of a build up of dirt and oil, "Who would let a machine get in such a condition?" He grumbled mostly to himself. Scraping his nail along the cast iron engine to gage how thick is was he cursed, "Kupo! This will need cleaning before we can do anything!"

"How do we do that?" Penelo asked, leaning her back against the driver's door.

"A good blasting with water should do it," Nono harrumphed, "And I do not know if we have access to such equipment, Kupo!" He kicked the air and landed on the ground, "We will need to source the things we need before we can fix this." He crossed his arms and looked out the door, "Where's Toffee?"

* * *

Ashling sat in the driver's seat as though waiting for something, anything. Basch sat next to her in the passenger seat just staring at her, "Are you alright?" He asked cautiously.

"Peachy," she replied dryly. Ashe and Larsa just watched Ash as she started the car and began to pull out of the car-park when an annoying sound chimed in Ash's pocket. With a curse she pulled her mobile phone out and answered it. "Yep," Ash sounded agitated at the sound of who was speaking on the other end, "Nuh you said I could have the night off considering … she what? … That Bitch! Yeah fine but I want double pay … then you owe me." She hung up the phone and sighed, "I have to work tonight." She continued like nothing had happened and drove them home.

The whole drive was silent with the three passengers passing looks to one another with concern for their driver. Once home Ash disappeared leaving Ashe, Larsa and Basch in the foyer. "Something's pissed her off," Larsa stated.

"Language my young lord," Basch chided the young boy, "I do not think my brother would want you to become lax with your upbringing while he is incapacitated."

"Sorry Basch," the young man lowered his head in shame, "I have been listening to how people talk here and I thought I would try to fit in."

Ashe patted the boy on the back, "One thing I have learnt here is that people value their uniqueness," she gave him a reassuring smile, "Be yourself and be proud of it."

Ash rushed down the stairs and past her friends, "Tell Alex sorry but I have work and can he take care of dinner." With that she left with the engine roaring and the wheels spinning in the gravel of the driveway.

"I wonder what she does for work," Larsa mused.

"I'm sure she will tell me soon enough," Ashe replied with equal curiosity.

They made their way to the kitchen to find it occupied by Balthier. He was sitting on the bench with a coffee and a bored expression on his face. "Well aren't we the happy little family," he quipped dryly at noticing the three new occupants of the room.

"Something bothering you?" Basch asked calmly as the others helped themselves to the contents of the cupboards.

"Vaan ditched me to research the _internet_," he responded despondently, "And Fran is occupied with Alex in the lounge room."

"What about the moogles?" Ashe asked opening a can of soft drink.

"With Penelo out in the shed."

"So the dashing sky pirate is bored and lonely?" Ashe teased, causing Basch's jaw to tighten at the playful tone she used.

Balthier caught Basch's reaction and smiled, "Not any more," his trademark grin returning to its rightful place. He slipped of the granite bench top and began to approach her when Basch's hand contacted with his chest. Balthier looked up with a curious yet cocky expression, he was answered with a silent shake of the knight's head.

Ashe seemed pleased that her friend had cheered up but did not see the interaction between knight and pirate, "Then what shall we do to pass the time until we eat?" She asked no one in particular.

The heated expressions passed between the men in the room were missed by the younger occupants. Balthier smiled and answered her, "I have a few ideas."

"Lets go for a walk!" Larsa cried, "We might see that creature with the baby again!"

The mentioning of a baby animal melted Ashe's heart, "A baby?" She cooed, "Where?"

Basch relaxed at the timing of Larsa, "I believe it is in the near by forest."

* * *

The four had left the house and were now standing where Larsa had last seen the Koala. "I wonder where it went?" Larsa commented whilst staring up into the tree.

"Maybe it moved on?" Basch suggested, "Animals move around all the time."

Ashe had wandered around aimlessly until stopping, coming eye to eye with a tall grey fury animal with pointy ears. Ashe froze at the sight, this creature was big and frightening and she did not want to provoke it to attack her. "Basch?" she called faintly so as not to startle this large thing. "Basch?" She called a little louder when her first attempt was missed.

Near by Basch and Balthier were sizing each other up when they heard the Princess's terrified cry. With their egos put on hold they rushed to the source of distress. Upon arriving at the Princess's side the two men were puzzled at what had frightened Ashe. The beast did not look dangerous but the pack behind it offered the possibility that they were dangerous in numbers.

Larsa, who had also heard the panicked cry from Ashe ran to see what was happening, he saw what the others had not, a moogle trapped in one of the creatures stomachs and appeared to be petrified as he (or she) trembled.

It was a stalemate, no one moved, not even the beasts that were the focus of everyone's attention. Finally movement occurred, one of the creatures lowered its head and began to clean its fur. Ashe sighed, relieved that this thing appeared not to be dangerous, it was then she saw the moogle, "Are you alright?" He called out to it.

Toffee lifted his trembling head out of the pouch and sobbed, "It thinks I'm its baby!"

Larsa giggled at the predicament which was rewarded with a glare from the frightened little creature. "Sorry," he mumbled and cast his eyes to his feet.

"Can you climb out?" Basch asked the moogle.

"I…" Toffee had not thought to try, "I'll try." He eased himself up and the beast leaned over to allow the moogle to climb out. Toffee scampered away, "Oh that was easy!" He bounced, startling the creatures and the all stood and bounced away.

"What strange animals," Ashe commented as she watched them disappear into the scrub.

* * *

Good news is I have already started the next chapter, bad news is I cannot give you a time to when it will be posted.


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